Departments · 330 Articles
Battles & Campaigns
Engagements, sieges, raids, and the operational decisions behind them, walked over the ground where they happened.
Featured in Battles & Campaigns
The Battle of Varnell Station, May 9, 1864
uring the late morning of May 9, 1864, Brigadier General Edward M. McCook led his First Division of Cavalry, Army of the Cumberland, a two-brigade force of some 2,800 troopers, south from Varnell Station toward the important Southern…
All Battles & Campaigns
330 articles · 2016–2026
Spirit on Display at N-SSA 153rd Nationals
As the United States of America marks its 250th birthday in 2026, the North-South Skirmish Association (N-SSA) has its own “Spirit of ’76,” recognizing the 76th a…
Bermuda Hundred Campaign Sign Project
lue & Gray Education Society (“BGES”) is “dedicated to the objective study of the origins and impact of the American Civil War and related events.” This is our Mi…
A Man Could Have Got Almost Anything He Wanted: Soldier Pickups on Central Virginia’s Battlefields – Part II
Jedediah Hotchkiss, Gen. Thomas J. “Stonewall” Jackson’s staff cartographer, recorded in his diary the discovery of the body of fellow staff officer and tentmate…
Spared & Shared A Time For Memory and For Tears
This well-composed letter written before Petersburg in July 1864—just days before the Battle of the Crater— was composed by Robert Nelson Traver (1841–1904) who w…
Houston CWRT Frank E. Vandiver Award
On July 2, 1863, the second day of the Battle of cartridges to each man and filling their stomachs. Captain Gettysburg, Pennsylvania, C.S. Gen. John Bell James E.…
General James Henry Lane
On the battle field near Spotsylvania C.H. May 14, 1864
Two Artists: One Forgotten Battle
Introduction and the Battle
Critic’s Corner
Bull’s narrative of his service in the campaign and in the Federal occupation of Atlanta, May 13-November 15, runs about 30% of his entire memoir. This alone make…
Chicora Cemetery Honors
Chicora Cemetery on the Averasboro battlefield site is, like all battleground burial grounds, a place of sadness and remembrance, where the fallen are honored for…
Spared & Shared Battle of Roanoke Island Letter
The next morning we did not move but the small boats were in advance to lookout the ground. Friday morning the 7th, orders were to move on and so we did—the gunbo…
Critic’s Corner
The best battle books describe the fighting with enough I call the difference between the practical and the sublime. detail to be definitive without sinking to ex…
Early Visitors to Central Virginia’s Battlefields – Part I
In December 1883, twenty-one years after the Battle of from the paved roads, utility lines, and automobiles that Fredericksburg, George C. Smithe, formerly a corp…
Phil Sheridan’s Widow Her Campaign to Protect His Memory
“I Would Rather be Phil Sheridan’s Widow” Irene Sheridan’s Campaign to Protect Her Husband’s Memory
The Work Of The Very Devil Himself
On July 2, 1863, about 6 p.m., during the Battle of Gettysburg, Penn., C.S. Gen. James Longstreet’s, Army of Northern Virginia, 15,500 men were driving U.S. Gen.…
The Columbus Belmont Battlefield Through the Lens
That Old Yell We Had Learned To Know So Well By Stephanie Hagiwara
The Columbus Belmont Battlefield
On September 3, 1861, Confederate army units under the command of General Leonidas Polk invaded Kentucky, and occupied bluffs above the Mississippi River at Colum…
A view from Columbus Park across the Mississippi River at the Belmont Battlefield.
On November 7, 1861, Grant loaded the 22nd Illinois, 27th Illinois, 30th Illinois, 31st Illinois and 7th Iowa onto six steamboats, and escorted by the gunboats US…
Emerging Civil War Bentonville, N.C.
Where the Familiar Seems Different From a tour bus, the fields that comprise most of the Bentonville battlefield look flat and open. But as I stood on the edge of…
Mathematically Impossible
Mathematically Impossible The October 8, 1862, Battle of Perryville, Ky., pitted U.S. Gen. Don Carlos Buell’s Army of the Ohio against C.S. Gen. Braxton Bragg’s A…
Lost from the Landscape: Destroyed Homes on Central Virginia’s Battlefields
A current thread in Civil War scholarship debates the destructiveness of the conflict. Some historians cite numerous examples of ruins-filled cities like Frederic…
The Lawbook Raid
On June 20, 1863, the newly formed state of West Virginia was admitted to the United States. The northern portion of the new state mostly favored the Union. Conve…
Sacred Places, Profane Scenes: Central Virginia’s Battlefield churches
Sacred Places, Profane Scenes: Central Virginia’s Battlefield churches By Tim Talbott he names of churches that were on or near some Civil War’s battlefields are…
Medal of Honor for Two of Andrews’ Raiders
On July 3, President Biden at the White House bestowed Medals of Honor to descendants of two Union soldiers who had participated in the daring Andrews’ Railroad R…
Misleading History: The Problematic Legacy of John G. Walker and the Maryland Campaign of September 1862
Ever since its publication in 1885, an article penned by former Confederate general John George Walker for The Century Magazine, titled, “Jackson’s Capture of Har…
Disturbing the Slumbering Hornet’s Nest
On May 22, 1863, the Stockade Redan was the scene of some of the bloodiest fighting of the entire Vicksburg campaign. Sergeant George Powell Clark, a member of th…
How Shall all These
Wounds be Healed? Exploring Battle’s Impact on Families By Jonathan A. Noyalas
“Busy at Their Work:” Medical Treatment at the Battle of the Wilderness
The Battle of the Wilderness, fought May 5-6, 1864, presented a whole host of issues for both the Army of the Potomac and the Army of Northern Virginia. Among oth…
The Battle of Aiken Attracts Thousands
By Pete Peters William Tecumseh Sherman, resting his troops in Savannah in 1865, declared, “When I go through South Carolina, it will be one of the most horrible…
Fort Donelson 2024 Symposium
DOVER, Tenn.—On February 10, the Fort Henry and Donelson Campaign Facebook Group partnered with Fort Donelson National Battlefield to host the Second Annual Civil…
“Under a Terrific Fire from the Enemy”: Ward’s Brigade at Fredericksburg
The quiet solitude of the present-day Slaughter Pen Farm battlefield at Fredericksburg belies the scene of horror it presented to those who fought there on Decemb…
The 2023 West Coast Civil War Round Table Conference “Pemberton and Grant: Vicksburg Campaign of 1863” November 4-5, 2023
The 2023 annual West Coast Civil War Round Table Conference was held in Fresno, Calif., November 4th and 5th. It was a success for all who attended and engaged wi…
THE CORPS THAT STOOD ALONE
“Major-General John Sedgwick [standing in the center] and Staff. Sedgwick’s Sixth Corps alone and unaided executed the most successful maneuver during the Chancel…
Lee saved Hill, who returned the favor in 1862
By Carl L. Sell Jr. Major General Ambrose Powell Hill Jr., and his new Light Division, had an impressive record in battle during the summer of 1862 but not so muc…
Beyond The Battle Named Best New Museum In U.S.
GETTYSBURG, Penn.— Gettysburg Beyond the Battle Museum, operated by the Adams County Historical Society, has won USA TODAY 10Best Readers’ Choice travel award for…
Sykes’ Regulars at Chancellorsville’s First Day
Chancellorsville Campaign. The primary exception for the V Corps was Maj. Gen. George Sykes’ Division, who fought on May 1, 1863. Composed of three brigades, Syke…
The Battle of the Bands / The Battle of Stones River: Part I
The Battle of the Bands The Battle of Stones River: Part I “Every soldier on that field knew when the sun went down on the 30th that on the following day he would…
N-SSA Fires off its 148th National Skirmish
Hardaway’s Alabama Battery took 1st place in the howitzer class with Jeffrey Baldwin’s Tredegar 12-pounder field howitzer. (Niki Bethke) By Bruce Miller The North…
The Battle of Chickamauga Remembered at the 160th Anniversary Reenactment in North Georgia
By Gregory L. Wade CHICKAMAUGA, Ga.—On a clear but hot September weekend, almost 3,000 reenactors from all over the country attended the 160th Battle of Chickamau…
Remembering Dean Thomas
Remembering Dean Thomas Author, Historian, and Publisher Dean S. Thomas, 74, passed away on July 15 at his home in Fairfield, after a courageous battle with cance…
Clendennin’s Raid: Forgotten Foray Between Chancellorsville and Gettysburg
Clendennin’s Raid: Forgotten Foray Between Chancellorsville and Gettysburg By Tim Talbott When one thinks of army operations that happened between the Battles of…
We Are As Good As Ten Thousand Battle of South Mountain – Part I
We Are As Good As Ten Thousand Battle of South Mountain – Part I “Here is a paper with which, if I cannot whip Bobby Lee, I will be willing to go home.” – U.S. Ge…
The Mule Shoe Struggle
By Jeffry D. Wert The Union assault on the Confederate position known as the Mule Shoe near Spotsylvania Court House, Virginia, on May 12, 1864, began a hellish o…
“The Men Fell on All Sides”: Kershaw’s Brigade at Fredericksburg
“The Men Fell on All Sides”: Kershaw’s Brigade at Fredericksburg By Tim Talbott At Fredericksburg, South Carolinians battled on both ends of the Confederate line.…
Tributes and Targets at N-SSA 147th Nationals
Tributes and Targets at N-SSA 147th Nationals By Bruce W. Miller The North-South Skirmish Association (N-SSA) held its 147th National Competition May 17 through 2…
Battle of Perryville Kentucky: the Hankla Farm
Battle of Perryville Kentucky: the Hankla Farm By Charles H. Bogart The Battle of Perryville, Ky., was fought October 8, 1862. This was the largest Civil War batt…
160th Anniversary of the Battle of Helena
By Professor Earnest Veritas Special Correspondent to – Western Theater – The Mississippi River Battle of Helena, Ark., July 4, 1863, was a well-intentioned effor…
“We Were Obliged to Retire:” Bartlett’s Brigade’s May 5, 1864, Wilderness Experience
“We Were Obliged to Retire:” Bartlett’s Brigade’s May 5, 1864, Wilderness Experience By Tim Talbot Depending on a host of circumstances, the fighting that unfolde…
Battle of Falling Waters 1863
By George Franks During the morning and early afternoon of July 14, 1863, the four brigades of Confederate General Henry “Harry” Heth’s Division, Hill’s Corps, ba…
The Chickamauga Campaign Trail
The Chickamauga Campaign Trail Until late in the Civil War’s third year, Federal forces had made no major incursions into the Confederacy’s third most populous st…
Brotherly Bonds Broken at Spotsylvania
Brotherly Bonds Broken at Spotsylvania While there were occasions during the Civil War where brothers opposed each other in battle, it was far more common for fam…
Atlanta Campaign Trail, Part 2
Too strong to assault and too extensive to invest Last month’s column covered the Atlanta Campaign as marked by Georgia Civil War Heritage Trails, from its starti…
Tattered, Battered, Bareheaded, And Blood-Smeared
Tattered, Battered, Bareheaded, And Blood-Smeared “Once more! Try the steel! Hell for ten minutes and we are out of it!” – U.S. Gen. Joshua Chamberlain By late Ma…
Shenandoah Valley Battlefields Foundation
Shenandoah Valley Battlefields Foundation Piedmont Battlefield 2022 saw great progress in permanently protecting key portions of the twenty battlefields the Found…
Georgia Civil War Heritage Trails: The Atlanta Campaign, Part 1
Georgia Civil War Heritage Trails: The Atlanta Campaign, Part 1 “They came with their heads bowed down and their hats pulled over their eyes as if to hide from vi…
One Soldier’s Ups and Downs with the Stonewall Brigade
by Carl L. Sell Jr. This is the story of one member of the Stonewall Brigade. He survived the Civil War despite fighting in major battles, being wounded and captu…
Mathew Brady Accused of Insider Trading While Visiting Grant in Virginia
by Bob Zeller This story was originally published in the April 2014 issue of Battlefield Photographer, the journal of The Center for Civil War Photography
Letters to the Editor
LETTERS TO THE EDITOR I was interested to read the article in the February 2023 Civil War News about the Battle of Olustee. If any of your readers are interested…
The Battle Of Olustee, Or Ocean Pond, Florida.
The Battle Of Olustee, Or Ocean Pond, Florida. By Samuel Jones Major-General C.S.A.
A Natural Battleground
A Natural Battleground Mountain passes, rivers, fords, roads and (in modern times) railroads often determine how armies move and consequently influence where armi…
A Monumental Confederate Gesture
by Joseph Wilson After the Civil War, monuments funded by states and private groups began populating the battlefields. Towns followed by erecting statues along th…
Events — January 2023
demonstrations, tours, displays, music, crafts, food, and Saturday’s Blue Grey Ball! Tour the historic log cabin, schoolhouse, jail, mercantile building, and sold…
Cyrus McCormick and the Battle of Shiloh
Cyrus McCormick and the Battle of Shiloh The Graphic War highlights prints and printmakers from the Civil War discussing their meaning and the print maker or arti…
More on J.C. Van Duzer
More on J.C. Van Duzer Last month’s column told the story of J.C. Van Duzer, the telegraph superintendent who got crosswise with Grant during the Mississippi Cent…
Jackson at Harper's Ferry in 1861
Jackson at Harper’s Ferry in 1861 Reprinted in its entirety from the original article.
Events Section — December 2022
Reenactment commemorating the 158th anniversary of the Battle of Olustee. More than 1,500 living historians will give presentations of both civilian and military…
Bennett Young's Vermont Raid
Bennett Young’s Vermont Raid One of the most daring exploits of the Civil War—and there were plenty—was the raid by a score of Confederate soldiers on a Vermont t…
Skirmish in the Streets Of Smithfield
SMITHFIELD, Va.—In August a new Civil War Trails sign was installed along Main Street in front of the Isle of Wight County Museum in downtown Smithfield. It was t…
Orlando Poe: Civil War engineer, Generals' aide, to Lighthouse builder
by Joan Wenner, J.D. As was said by a gunboat captain to Union Secretary of the Navy Gideon Welles, “Battles are won by two qualities, the ability to endure and a…
How the Charleston Mercury Gave Stonewall His Nickname
by Stephen Davis Newspapers, as the saying goes, write the first draft of history. Such was the case of the Charleston Mercury’s reporting on the battle of Manass…
Savas Beatie Authors/Readers Gather at Gettysburg
by Leon Reed Special to Civil War News For the second straight year, Savas Beatie authors and readers met in Gettysburg for three days of battlefield tours, bookt…
One Grand and Imposing Monument
One Grand and Imposing Monument In 1890, just over a quarter century after two great battles were fought in northwest Georgia and adjacent areas of Tennessee, the…
Carrying the War North John Hunt Morgan’s 1863 Raid – Part III
of the approaching 14th Ky. were killed or wounded by the Spencer Guards. The surprised Confederates rapidly retreated, then the 7th Ky. Cavalry attacked the Indi…
In de Land ob Cotton: Dan Emmett’s Famous Song
by Stephen Davis I’m trying to remember where I read some observer’s only half-jestful comment about the difference between “The Battle Hymn of the Republic” and…
Emerging Civil War Series Spotlight
Determined to Stand and Fight: The Battle of Monocacy, July 9, 1864 by Ryan Quint. Savas Beatie, 2017.
Champagne Dreams John Hunt Morgan’s 1863 Raid – Part II
Champagne Dreams John Hunt Morgan’s 1863 Raid – Part II “A street fight is one of the most desperate modes of warfare known to a soldier. The advantage is strongl…
A 40-horse wagon train pulls Jackson’s engines to Staunton
by Carl Sell Jr. The February issue of the Civil War News included a story about Colonel Thomas Jackson’s spring 1861 raid on the B&O Railroad that resulted in en…
Weather Hot, Competition Hotter
WINCHESTER, Va.—While temperatures soared into the 90’s, the North-South Skirmish Association (N-SSA) held its 145th National Competition May 18 through 22, 2022.…
The Fredericksburg National Cemetery
The Fredericksburg National Cemetery by Terry Rensel In the eighteen months between December 1862 and May 1864, four major battles, Fredericksburg; Chancellorsvil…
Not On The 4th of July John Hunt Morgan’s 1863 Raid – Part I
Not On The 4th of July John Hunt Morgan’s 1863 Raid – Part I “It seemed as if so small a band as ours had been stationed there [Tebb’s Bend, Ky.] as a bait … If C…
Letters to the Editor
Letter to the Editor from North Carolina Department of Transportation There were some mistakes in the article on the Kinston Bypass and its impact on the core are…
“I should have kept the matter a secret.”
In late April 1906 a Jesuit priest from Chicago wrapped up a lecture tour with an engagement in Springfield, Ill. From there, on April 28, he boarded a train for…
No One Can Tell What Would Happen In War
“Who can write the history of a battle whose eyes are immovably fastened upon a central figure of transcendingly absorbing interest—the dead body of an oldest bor…
Emerging Civil War — July 2022
May offers a wealth of riches for any student of the Civil War. The weather finally got good enough for campaigning, which unfortunately meant new seasons of slau…
Battles and Leaders of the Civil War
Douglas Southall Freeman deemed it one of “the basic reference works” on the war.1 Ralph Newman and E. B. Long included it the same way in their “Basic Civil War…
Trotter Knapsack
Trotter Knapsack Another common Confederate type knapsack was an imported version from Britain called the English pattern of 1854, or “Trotter pack,” an example o…
The Home Front
The Home Front The Graphic War highlights prints and printmakers from the Civil War discussing their meaning and the print maker or artist’s goals. Along with the…
New Perspectives on the Atlanta Campaign and General John Bell Hood
by Stephen Davis The Sesquicentennial of the American Civil War is over, and the country’s cultural conversation has moved on to other things. But for us armchair…
Hancock Was Superb Battle of Williamsburg – Part II
Revolution War, reported, “Our Revolutionary sires did not suffer more at Valley Forge than did our army at Yorktown and in the retreat from it. Notwithstanding t…
Events — June 2022
Located between Richmond and Williamsburg on the James River, scenic Fort Pocahontas is the site of the May 24, 1864, action in which United States Colored Troops…
Miracle at the Battle of First Kernstown
“If You Can Save His Life, You Can Have Him” – She Did! Darkness, despair, and searing pain enveloped wounded Captain James Vance of the ThirtySeventh Virginia In…
Follow Me! Battle of Williamsburg Part I
Follow Me! Battle of Williamsburg Part I “Never in my life was I so mortified, never so excited, never so mad. It had at any rate the good effect of making me for…
Atlanta: Then & Now
Atlanta: Then & Now Folks often ask about locations of the various battles for Atlanta in 1864 and where this hallowed ground resides amid today’s sprawl of a maj…
General Benjamin Prentiss’ Capture at the Battle of Shiloh
Shiloh Battle Field. / Gen'l Prentiss is standing on the spot where he was captured at 5.30 P.M., April 6, 1862. Union veterans identified as Col. J.S. Cavender,…
158th Anniversary – Battle of the Wilderness
Most who study the American Civil War must admit to having a particular battle that interests them most. Whether it be due to an ancestor who fought in it, or tha…
I Shall Never Forsake My Guns
I Shall Never Forsake My Guns Battle of Valverde, N.M. – Part II “Boys, you’ve come too far from home hunting a fight to lose. You must win tomorrow, or die on th…
Civil War Alphabet Quiz – V as in... March
Copperhead leader Jackson’s most famous campaign Battle that slowed invasion of New Mexico Official name for ironclad that fought the Monitor Union Brigade comman…
A Hot Fight at Cool Spring
by Carl Sell Jr. Perhaps the coolest thing about the Cool Spring Battlefield is its location. Now owned by Shenandoah University, this Civil War battlefield is lo…
The Lieutenant Hugh Mckee Memorial Rededication
The Lieutenant Hugh Mckee Memorial Rededication by Charles H. Bogart Very few historians know that the U.S. Navy’s Far East Squadron fought a land engagement with…
Kibler Knapsacks
Kibler Knapsacks The image of a soldier with a thick blanket roll or “horse collar” slung diagonally across his mid-section is practically a universal representat…
Events — February 2022
The 157th Anniversary of one of the last Confederate victories of the Civil War. Experience history coming alive during a weekend of battles, demonstrations, tour…
Emerging Civil War — January 2022
From the Editor Most of us, I know, tend to think of summer as “campaign season” for Civil War battles. The roads finally dried up enough for the armies to move a…
Battle of Stones River Reenactment a Success
by Gregory L. Wade Approximately 2,000 reenactors from across the country gathered outside Lebanon, Tenn., for a reenactment of the New Year’s Eve 1862, and Janua…
A Prequel, or Grant vs. Grant
A Prequel, or Grant vs. Grant In 2019 I wrote a column in Civil War News about the October 1862 Battle of Corinth. My focus was on Maj. Gen. Ulysses S. Grant and…
Wilson’s Creek National Battlefield Observes the 160th Anniversary of the Battle
The 160th anniversary of the significant battle of Wilson’s Creek was solemnly observed in front of the newly renovated Visitor Center at the NPS battlefield in S…
Emerging Revolutionary War — December 2021
during the American Revolution? Well, there was the victory at Saratoga in October 1777 and the culmination of the Yorktown Campaign in 1781, of course. The Battl…
A Welcome Return to Skirmishing at the N-SSA 144th Nationals
After the COVID pandemic caused cancellation of the two 2020 nationals and the spring 2021 national, the North-South Skirmish Association (N-SSA) was finally able…
Sherman’s March and America: Mapping Memory
shermansmarch.org/about/, to get an overview of the material provided and navigation tips. Five interactive maps offer various views of the campaign: The Sherman…
My Ten Best Books for 2021
life at Camp Carrollton and Benton Barracks to his unit’s battles at Shiloh, Corinth, and Vicksburg. His adventures don’t end on the battlefield but continue at t…
Emerging Revolutionary War — November 2021
Although the battle happened in August, Emerging Revolutionary War historians Rob Orrison and Mark Wilcox traveled to Camden, South Carolina, to take pictures of…
Civil War Alphabet Quiz – S as in... November
1. Charleston fort named for Rev War hero 2. US general captured by Mosby 3. Hit by sharpshooter at such a distance an elephant couldn’t be hit 4. “Old Fuss and F…
Memorial Service to Be Held for Ed Bearss
A memorial service honoring the life and legacy of Edwin C. Bearss (1923–2020) will be held at the Brownsville Picnic Pavilion in the Manassas National Battlefiel…
Re-establishing the Past (Restoring Battlefields)
There are things in life that can be classified as rare. The IRS suddenly sending you a big check with a note, “We had a little extra, thought you might like it;”…
N-SSA and SUVCW Team Dedicate Headstone
N-SSA and SUVCW Team Dedicate Headstone by Bruce W. Miller On July 6, 2021, members of the North-South Skirmish Association (N-SSA) and the General Israel B. Rich…
Hero of the Battle of Tebbs Bend
Orlando H. Moore. by Professor Earnest Veritas Special Correspondent to the The seemingly arbitrary hand of History moves over events and people of note and with,…
Crook’s Devils
Crook’s Devils “Fighting battles is like courting girls. Those who make most pretension and are boldest usually win. So go ahead, give good hearty yells …[But] do…
Coggins Point Raid, September 1864
Coggins Point Raid, General Wade Hampton’s successful Great Beefsteak Raid at Coggins Point was a unique and interesting footnote to the Petersburg/Richmond campa…
Saving the July 14, 1863, Falling Waters Battlefield
by George Franks Falling Waters. The first question is always “which one”? The 1861 Battle of Falling Waters was fought in Virginia, now West Virginia, and is als…
Parker’s Crossroads Memorial Day Ceremony
Parker’s Crossroads Memorial Day Ceremony by Professor Earnest Veritas Special Correspondent to Western Theater Memorial Day was solemnly observed in West Tenness…
News Briefs — August 2021
Introducing the Antietam Institute A group dedicated to studying the Battle of Antietam and the 1862 Maryland Campaign have organized the Antietam Institute, a me…
Dyer’s Compendium: Part II Chronological Record of the Campaigns, Battles, Engagements, Actions, Combats, Sieges, Skirmishes, Etc.
Dyer’s Compendium: Part II Chronological Record of the Campaigns, Battles, Engagements, Actions, Combats, Sieges, Skirmishes, Etc. The column for this month draws…
2nd Corps Field Hospital Offered Wounded Soldiers Compassion and Comfort
2nd Corps Field Hospital Offered Wounded Soldiers Compassion and Comfort by Bob Ruegsegger Casualties during battles such as Antietam, Spotsylvania, and Gettysbur…
Naval Battle Charleston, 1863
Naval Battle Charleston, 1863 The Graphic War highlights prints and printmakers from the Civil War discussing their meaning and the print maker or artist’s goals.…
A Boy Sailor’s Tragic Odyssey
by Joseph F. Wilson Heavy smoke drifted through the streets of New York City in July 1863 as multiple fires illuminated the night sky. Rioters roamed the streets…
A New Initiative at Gettysburg: Rehabilitating Culp’s Hill
The Gettysburg battlefield is one of the most studied, photographed, written about, and visited Civil War sites. Yet portions of that field and its accompanying s…
“Hold it at all Hazards”: General Battle’s Counterattack
“Hold it at all Hazards”: General Battle’s Counterattack by Tom Van Winkle “The woods in front were so thick that it was impossible to see more than 20 steps from…
The Camden Expedition Part I
The Camden Expedition Part I “The men seemed eager as bloodhounds, and never halted or retired under the hottest fire.” – C.S. Gen. Joseph Shelby In 1864, for pol…
A Battle of Williamsburg Trophy
A Battle of Williamsburg Trophy by Shannon Pritchard Every soldier, North and South, needed a knife when they marched off to war and in the South it was fashionab…
The Revenge Raid on Lake Mattamuskeet
Following reassignment of most Federal occupation forces in North Carolina to join General George McClellan’s Peninsular Campaign in Virginia, effective Union con…
Monocacy National Battlefield’s New Superintendent
WASHINGTON, D.C.— National Park Service (NPS) acting Area Director Lisa Mendelson-Ielmini has named Andrew Banasik as the superintendent of Monocacy National Batt…
McDonald, Pennsylvania, Emancipation Day Celebration
In 1862, the Civil War was going badly for General George McClellan and the Army of the Potomac; President Lincoln was impatiently waiting for good news and a maj…
Marching through Georgia in the 21st Century
In September 1863 war came to Georgia in earnest when Federal and Confederate armies clashed at Chickamauga. The following year, Sherman’s armies campaigned to At…
Civil War Alphabet Quiz – J as in...
“Fool Tom” or “old blue light” This battle precipitated the “fall of Atlanta” Official name of the iron clad first named Muscogee Confederate Army commander kille…
Wadsworth Memorial on Wilderness Battlefield
Wadsworth Memorial on Wilderness Battlefield by Peter R. Kolakowski If you’re driving along Orange Plank Road, just west of the historic Brock Road intersection d…
Harper’s Weekly Index
Harper’s Weekly Index [The first two paragraphs, edited from the February 2017 edition of this column, will set the stage for the index under study.] Visualizing…
Grave marker for Gettysburg post-battle casualty installed
by Leon Reed Bruce Davis, chair of the Gettysburg Civil War Roundtable and historians Tim Smith and Fred Hawthorne spoke at a brief November 21 ceremony in Gettys…
Gordon’s Flank Attack in the Wilderness
In his memoirs Maj. Gen. John B. Gordon devoted a chapter to the second day of the Battle of the Wilderness. Nearly all the 19page discussion is allotted to his o…
Burger and Brothers First National Guidon
by Shannon Pritchard The swallowtail guidon shown below was used by the Army of Northern Virginia’s cavalry companies and, just as the name implies, they were use…
Slow Pete The Knoxville Campaign – Part II
“Every day of delay added to the strength of the enemy’s breastworks” – C.S. Col. Edward Porter Alexander After the November 16, 1863, Battle of Campbell’s Statio…
History’s First Draft – The Maryland Campaign as it Happened
How fast did the news travel? How accurate were the reports in the press? What did Northern readers know during the middle of September 1862, as Lee’s forces marc…
Emerging Civil War — December 2020
From the Editor “No period of American history makes greater demands on the historian than that of the Civil War,” historian C. Vann Woodward wrote in his introdu…
Salvatore Cilella’s Top Ten Civil War Books
Salvatore Cilella’s Top Ten Civil War Books 1. Battle Cry of Freedom: The Civil War Era, by James McPherson, (Oxford University Press, 1988). Anyone interested in…
Harold Holzer’s Top Ten Civil War Books
Harold Holzer’s Top Ten Civil War Books 1. Battle Cry of Freedom: The Civil War Era by James McPherson. Oxford University Press, 1988. Judicious, authoritative, b…
A Race In The Mud Knoxville Campaign – Part I
A Race In The Mud Knoxville Campaign – Part I “On several occasions during the war [Jefferson Davis] came to the relief of the Union army by means of his superior…
Video Series Commemorates Historic Fairfax County, Virginia, Battle
FAIRFAX, Va.—One of the more significant but oft forgotten events in the American Civil War took place Sept. 1, 1862 near Chantilly, Va., in what is remembered lo…
News Briefs — October 2020
Licensed Battlefield Guides Raise Alarm of Major Threat to Gettysburg Monuments GETTYSBURG, Pa.—The Licensed Battlefield Guides at Gettysburg are raising the alar…
How Far? A New Perspective on the Battle of Spotsylvania
When I was eighteen and in basic training, we had a road march of 12-15 miles one day. Although I don’t walk those distances these days, I still remember and appr…
A Glorious Charge: Armstrong’s Raid – Part 2
fought the Federals near Bolivar, Tenn., as part of his raid into west Tennessee. Both sides believed they won the skirmish and both sides considered the quarterm…
“My Home, My Battlefield, My Passion”
Entering the thick forest of the Wilderness, I carefully negotiate the underbrush as the sharp tree limbs seem to intentionally assault my face and arms. It is ov…
Give Them Cold Steel Armstrong’s Raid – Part I
“It is reported that a rebel force of 6,000 cavalry have been sent to attack our lines. Keep a sharp lookout.” – U.S. Gen. Ulysses S. Grant On Aug. 14, 1862, C.S.…
Fort Sanders
The long summer of 1863 was marked in the eastern theater by Meade’s inability to crush Lee after Gettysburg. All summer long and into the fall, the two armies pu…
Previously Unknown Map Showing Engagement’s Aftermath Amounts to ‘Rosetta Stone” for Battle of Antietam
Without a doubt, the battlefield at Antietam, site of the September 17, 1862, clash that still represents the bloodiest day in American history, is hallowed groun…
Perspectives on Sharpsburg, Phase One
In previous columns we viewed the Battle of Antietam from the perspective of Federal officers whose troops contended with their Confederate enemies throughout the…
Civil War Alphabet Quiz - F
Fort that kept Wilmington, N.C., open for blockade runners “That Devil” who said “get there first with the most men” Battle where Cleburn fell He led a cavalry ch…
Thirty Minutes of Bloody Excitement
Thirty Minutes of Bloody Excitement Personal Accounts of Two Officers Who Faced Each Other From Opposite Sides of a Great Battlefield by Roger Semplak and Marc Ra…
Southern Dead at Gettysburg
Southern Dead at Gettysburg by Sue Boardman The Gettysburg National Cemetery is an important part of any visitor’s experience on the battlefield. It is sobering t…
Civil War Alphabet Quiz - E
1. General Lee’s bald, “bad old man” 2. John B. Hood first led the Texas Brigade in this 1862 Virginia battle 3. The other name for the Battle of Pea Ridge 4. The…
Wilson’s Creek National Battlefield Announced Awards for Employee and Team of the Year for 2019
Park makes history with special honors during a virtual awards ceremony REPUBLIC, Mo.—Wilson’s Creek National Battlefield paid tribute recently to employees who d…
The 44th Battle of Olustee Reenactment at Olustee State Park, Florida
One of the bloodiest but least known battles of the Civil War, the Battle of Olustee (also known as the Battle of Ocean Pond), Florida, was fought on Feb. 20, 186…
Scarce George Custer Related ID Pin
Question: I have a badge for the Battle of Cedar Creek. What was the intended audience for this badge? The general public or soldiers in the cavalry unit? I don’t…
Civil War Events — April 2020
The General Barton Stovall History & Heritage Association will be holding their 19th annual Congress in Cartersville, Georgia. The event features two days of batt…
3rd NC Cavalry—North-South Skirmish Association
The companies of this regiment were in the field as early as August 1861. They served on independent duty as scouts and pickets from the Cape Fear River in North…
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“I have it Verry [sic] Nice Here”
John Seth Smith (1829–1922) joined Company B, 5th New York Cavalry in August 1862. Promoted to corporal, he was discharged April 25, 1864, due to a gunshot wound…
Carrie Sheads House
Carrie Sheads is truly an icon of American History. Twenty-seven years old at the time of the Battle of Gettysburg, Caroline (Carrie) S. Sheads was the principal…
A Dramatic Leap The Battle of Glorieta Pass – Part 1
“Boys, I’m the worst enemy you have” – C.S. Gen. Henry Sibley, departing from Ft. Union After the 1846–1848 MexicanAmerican War, the United States stretched from…
Perspectives on Antietam Phase Three – Burnside’s Bridge
In December and January we observed, through the eyes of several Federal officers, the carnage in the first two phases of the Battle of Antietam, on the north and…
Brass Bands
“I don’t believe we can have an army without music,” – General Robert E. Lee to Colonel John R. Lane Commander of the 26th NC Regt., prior to the Battle of the Wi…
A Civil War Battlefield Monument in North Dakota The Whitestone Hill Battlefield Monument
The period of the American Civil War, 1861–1866, saw not only Federal and Confederate troops battling each other but also saw Federal and Confederate forces fight…
A Bigger Chunk Than We Could Chaw (Battle of Chickasaw Bayou part 2)
“We will lose 5,000 men before we take Vicksburg, and may as well lose them here as anywhere else.” – U.S. Gen. William T. Sherman At the onset of the Battle of C…
This Ball Is At An End (Battle of Chickasaw Bayou part 1)
Better come out here, I hears a boat a coming. … I hears it say, choo, choo, pat, pat, pat.” – little negro girl On the evening of Dec. 24, 1862, telegraph operat…
National Treasure
As an unfortunate side effect of time, the War of 1812 is a conflict known to many in name alone. Its dates, battles, ships, and the brave men who fought on both…
Battle of Mill Springs Final Reenactment
NANCY, Ky.—The 1862 Battle of Mill Springs 2019 Reenactment was held on a crisp early November weekend along the rolling terrain on the actual battle ground, like…
“Co. Aytch”
Private Watkins saw the elephant at Shiloh, followed Bragg to Perryville, and was slightly wounded at Murfreesboro. He suffered through the rout at Missionary Rid…
The Battle of Stones River or Murfreesboro December 31, 1862 – January 3, 1863
The Graphic War highlights prints and printmakers from the Civil War discussing their meaning and most importantly, the print maker or artist’s goals. Early in th…
The Battle of Arkansas Post: Target of Opportunity
In 1861, the small town of Arkansas Post, also known as Post of Arkansas, would become an integral part of the Civil War defense of Arkansas. That same year, the…
Perspectives on Antietam
After his victory at the second battle fought at Manassas, Lee led his men across the Potomac. Lincoln, dissatisfied with Pope, turned again to McClellan, who pur…
New Gettysburg Campaign Study Receives Prestigious Award
CANFIELD, Ohio—The Mahoning Valley Civil War Round Table has awarded its 2019 Hugh G. Earnhart Civil War Scholarship Award to Thomas J. Ryan and Richard R. Schaus…
Forrest Fight Continues in Memphis
MEMPHIS, Tenn.—The legal clash over the Forrest Equestrian Statue in Memphis stretches on, as the Sons of Confederate Veterans and the Forrest Family Descendants…
Excellence at the N-SSA 140th Nationals
Over the 69-year history of the North-South Skirmish Association (N-SSA), there have been many great championship units. Without a doubt, the greatest of the 21st…
Arkansas Foot Races
You will soon hear of one of the damnedest fights or foot races that had taken place lately.” – U.S. Gen. James G. Blunt After losing the March 7-8, 1862, Battle…
157th Battle Reenactment of Gettysburg is a Go!
GETTYSBURG, Penn.—Who is Dustin Heisey? Born in the historic town of Maytown, Penn., Dustin is a United States Army veteran, having served eight years, including…
“I’ve looked at clouds from both sides now”
Some of us old-timers can remember Judy Collins’ hit, “Both Sides Now” (1968), in which she sings of gazing at clouds in the sky. Well, that’s what George Barnard…
Small Talk-Trivia — October 2019
Atlanta Campaign 1. Who was the Union army commander killed in the battle fought east of Atlanta on July 22, 1864? 2. Who was Johnston’s and Hood’s cavalry comman…
George Barnard’s Photographic Views of Sherman’s Campaigns
George Barnard’s Photographic Views of Sherman’s Campaigns By Stephen Davis Special to Civil War News
David vs. Goliath
“It [was] my right, if not my duty, to act the part of a belligerent.” – C.S. Lt. William T. Glassell On September 7, 1863, the Federals captured Morris Island, C…
Chambersburg Civil War Seminars & Tours Announces Ted Alexander’s Retirement and Successor Eric Wittenberg
Chambersburg Civil War Seminars & Tours Announces Ted Alexander’s Retirement and Successor Eric Wittenberg Ted Alexander, retired chief historian at Antietam Nati…
155th Anniversaries of the Crater and Weldon Railroad
155th Anniversaries of the Crater and Weldon Railroad Petersburg National Battlefield observes the 155th Anniversaries of the Battles of the Crater and Weldon Rai…
New Monument to the 1st Maine Cavalry Dedicated at Mount Defiance Historic Park in Middleburg, Virginia
From June 17-21, 1863, a series of three battles were fought to screen the Confederate Army of Northern Virginia’s advance toward the Maryland and Pennsylvania. G…
Mobile, Alabama
1. Mobile was founded in 1711 by settlers from what European country? 2. This fort, at the tip of a peninsula on the eastern side of the entrance to Mobile Bay, w…
Kurz and Allison, Printmakers Antietam
The Graphic War highlights prints and printmakers from the Civil War discussing their meaning and most importantly, the print maker or artist’s goals. During the…
Young Skirmishers Join the Fun at N-SSA 139th Nationals
The North-South Skirmish Association prides itself on its motto of “History, Competition and Camaraderie.” One of the many ways the Association does this is throu…
The Battle of Champion Hill
HINDS COUNTY, Miss.— On May 16, 1863, following the Union capture of Jackson, Miss., Maj. Gen. Ulysses S. Grant’s 32,000 advancing Union soldiers met 22,000 Confe…
Hollywood History
Disney’s movie The Great Locomotive Chase (1956) was based on the Andrews railroad raid in Georgia in 1862. John Ford’s The Horse Soldiers (1959) was based on Ben…
Globe Tavern or Weldon Railroad, August 1864
This column highlights prints from the Civil War, discusses their meaning, and most importantly, details what the print maker or artist was trying to achieve. Lik…
Eye in the Sky
“A hawk hovering above a chicken yard could not have caused more commotion than did my balloons when they appeared before Yorktown, [Va.].” – Professor Thaddeus L…
Mississippi was in our hands
Mississippi was in our hands In May 1862, seven weeks after Shiloh, the Confederates were compelled to evacuate Corinth, Miss. Four months later they tried to tak…
The CVBT and me
The CVBT and me By Robert Lee Hodge Is there any chance you will be here in October?—Scott [Fitzgerald] and I have got a grand tour of the Virginia battlefields p…
General Sherman Never Gets Drunk (The Battle of Rocky Face Ridge –Part 2)
General Sherman Never Gets Drunk (The Battle of Rocky Face Ridge –Part 2) “Well, Mac, you have missed the opportunity of your life.” – William T. Sherman The firs…
Frank Leslie’s Illustrated Newspaper
Frank Leslie’s Illustrated Newspaper A name without a face, a battlefield absent terrain features, or accounts of pivotal events, all created confusion when readi…
Emerging Civil War — June 2019
Since remarrying five years ago, I’ve lived on the edge of the Chancellorsville battlefield but continued to teach at St. Bonaventure University. Online classes h…
Center for the Study of the Civil War Era
Center for the Study of the Civil War Era The chocolate chips have become a tradition. As the bus rolled homeward, south on Interstate 75 from the northwest Georg…
Perspectives on Murfreesboro
How absurd to suppose that the ever-vigilant McCook, always on the alert, should permit any troops under his command to be surprised! How absurd to suppose that t…
Chambersburg Raid Scouts
(This story contains updated information about Hugh Logan, one of Jeb Stuart’s scouts for the October 1862 Chambersburg Raid that refutes a newspaper account of h…
Battle of Hampton Roads Commemorated at Mariners’ Museum’s Monitor Center
The 157th anniversary of the Battle of Hampton Roads was commemorated at the Mariners’ Museum’s Monitor Center on March 9th. Reenactors, interpreters, lecturers,…
‘The Battle of Atlanta’ Cyclorama Opens After Four Year Restoration
ATLANTA, Ga.—On Feb. 22, 2019, the Atlanta History Center opened The Battle of Atlanta cyclorama after a four-year, $35.8 million relocation and restoration proje…
Women’s History Month Offers Opportunity to Spotlight Rising Star in Civil War Public History
More than 2,500 miles separate Sarah Kay Bierle from some of the most significant battlefields on the East Coast. That distance might scare some less-enthusiastic…
Stuart Scouts for Ride Around McClellan
This is the first of two articles about Jeb Stuart’s local scouts who led his large cavalry force during rides around Major General George McClellan’s Union army…
Reenactment History, Dixie Gun Works Catalog
In my December column, I wrote about the confusion at the Civil War Centennial reenactment of the Battle of Antietam. In doing so I ventured an opinion that that…
Fort Donelson Anniversary Programs
The battle at Fort Donelson was an early turning point in the US Civil War that took place in mid-February 1862, right around St. Valentine’s Day. General Grant r…
The Atlanta Papers (cont.)
The Atlanta Papers cover and spine. Continuing the dig into Sydney C. Kerksis’s The Atlanta Papers, this month’s column contains additional Federal accounts from…
The Atlanta Papers
Working to offset a deficit in published material on the Atlanta Campaign of 1864, former U.S. Army officer Sydney C. Kerksis compiled The Atlanta Papers, which M…
Antietam Centennial, Sharpshooter Info & Whitworth Ammo Specs
Antietam Centennial, Sharpshooter Info & Whitworth Ammo Specs Antietam 100th As most readers of this column know, I have been acquiring original news photos of tw…
“The Bugle Was to Blame”
“The Bugle Was to Blame” By Stephen Davis Special to Civil War News Years after the war Union veterans reminisced and wrote about the battle of Pickett’s Mill, Ga…
“A Want of Vigilance” – The Battle of Bristoe Station, Oct. 14, 1863
“A Want of Vigilance” – The Battle of Bristoe Station, Oct. 14, 1863 By Joe Bordonaro Following the bloodiest battle of the Civil War—Gettysburg— General Lee’s Ar…
Miscellany
1. What battle in Tennessee became notorious as a “massacre” of African American Union troops? 2. This Union cavalry officer led a raid toward Richmond in the win…
Ironclad Revolution Exhibit Offers Unique View of Civil War Naval History
When the ironclads USS Monitor and CSS Virginia fought the Battle of Hampton Roads on March 9, 1862, it essentially marked the beginning of the end of the era of…
Battlefield Recovers from Hurricane
NEW BERN, N.C.—Hurricane Florence battered New Bern in September and while a large tree hit the roof of the Visitors Center and dozens of trees were down on the b…
Battle of Richmond Kentucky Reenactment
RICHMOND, Ky.—Clear weather and a bright evening moon welcomed about 300 participants to the Battle of Richmond, Kentucky, annual reenactment held on the ground o…
Books and Libraries in Camp and Battle
Books and Libraries in Camp and Battle We know what we read (or would like to read), but what did Civil War soldiers read? To get at the answers, I turned to Davi…
A Special Exchange
A Special Exchange The young Georgian enlisted as a private in Co. D, 15th Georgia Infantry six days before the First Battle of Manassas. Two months later he tran…
Who Shot General Mansfield? A Civil War Historian’s Search for Answers
The 10th Maine Regiment of Volunteers crossed a plowed field as they shifted their column to a line of battle on Sept. 17, 1862. Some soldiers fell from heavy fir…
News Briefs — October 2018
Maine Monument Effort Continues at 3rd Winchester The ongoing effort to establish a permanent monument to Maine’s Civil War soldiers who fought in 1864 Shenandoah…
General Grant’s Favorite Cigars
Recently, while sitting around the campfire at Stones River Battlefield Park between programs, somebody raised an interesting question about what brand of cigars…
Civil War Events — October 2018
The Brice’s Crossroads Attack from the Civil War’s Western Theatre will be a reenactment of the Mississippi battle in June of 1864 when a contingent of Confederat…
Antietam
Antietam 1. The commander of the Union XII Corps who was mortally wounded in the battle was Maj. Gen. Joseph K. F. _____. 2. The bridge over Antietam Creek on the…
A Battlefield and Much, Much More
For many years I attended an annual conference in Washington. For a few of those trips I left early with some friends and spent a weekend touring battlefields bef…
Sixth Corps March Commemoration, June 27–July 2
The movements of the Sixth Corps on July 2, 1863, are such to challenge the admiration of mankind. Its majestic tread on the battle-field, at the supreme moment,…
Rain Can’t Dampen N-SSA 137th National Competition
It doesn’t “take a village” to put on a North-South Skirmish Association (N-SSA) National Competition. However, it does require about 150 people and a lot of hard…
Never Be Afraid
Never Be Afraid “The Rebel bullet that can kill me has not yet been molded.” – U.S. Gen. Philip Kearny On September 1, 1862, both sides were exhausted and sloggin…
Brandy Station the ‘Ideal Place’ for Event
CULPEPER COUNTY, Va.— Our group of reenactors aspired to recreate the sights, sounds, and smells when the 8th Virginia Infantry prepared to march north in June 18…
Battle of Franklin Carter Hill Park: New Acquisition to Battle of Franklin Carter Hill Park Acreage
FRANKLIN, Tenn.—Another key piece of battle ground from the November 1864 Battle of Franklin landscape will be acquired thanks to the fund raising efforts by of F…
Veteran Reenactors Still Bring History to Life at Endview Plantation
For more than 25 years, reenactors and living historians have gathered at Endview Plantation in Newport News to bring history to life through battle reenactments…
Unprecedented Excavation of Surgeon Pit at Manassas National Battlefield Park Shows the Aftermath of Battle
While working on a utility project in Manassas National Battlefield Park in 2014, the National Park Service stumbled upon something remarkable: a battlefield surg…
Listen to the Alabamians
Publisher’s Note: When we decided to devote “Fact or Fiction” to the origin of Stonewall’s nickname, we contacted John Hennessy, former historian at Manassas Nati…
Exploring Civil War History: The Sunken Road Walking Trail at Fredericksburg
During the Battle of Fredericksburg, the Confederate line of battle stretched for miles along the west side of the Rappahannock River. More than 172,000 troops we…
Tubman’s Raiders
“Pass the Bearer, Harriet Tubman, to Beaufort [S.C.] and back to this place, and wherever she wishes to go, and give her free passage at all times.” – U.S. Gen. D…
New Battle at Bentonville?
RALEIGH, N.C—In August of 2017, an online commenter inquired of the Encyclopedia of North Carolina, University of N.C. Press, “When does the commission plan on re…
McDonough and Jones’ War So Terrible
In the late 1980s, the literature of the Atlanta Campaign was adolescent indeed. Richard McMurry had written a short account of the campaign for a National Park S…
An Unlucky Horseshoe: Second Reams Station
In late August 1864, the siege of Petersburg, Va., was well into its second month. Federal General Ulysses S. Grant was trying to put more pressure on the Confede…
Unknown Soldier’s Grave at Kennesaw Mountain NBP
MARIETTA, Ga.—The only Union Soldier still on duty at Kennesaw National Battlefield Park has a Christmas wreath on his grave. Members of the Kennesaw Mountain Cam…
NC Cavalry “long range guns,” Southern Starrs & Colt Sales
We are back at the battle of New Bern again. Another interesting newspaper clipping arrived from my North Carolina friend Skip Riddle. First lieutenant William A.…
Dying 108th N.Y. soldier: ‘Tell Charlie I tried to do my duty’
In the spring of 1864, the hard fighting 108th New York struggled to replenish its ranks after brutal battles at Antietam, Fredericksburg, Chancellorsville, and G…
Perspectives on Bull Run
Every reader of Civil War News knows about the July 21, 1861, battle on the banks of Bull Run, thirty miles or so from Washington City, the first large-scale batt…
Battlefields Mean Business
Every spring, summer, and fall, families and individuals flock to America’s best-known battlefields, lured by great stories, momentous deeds, and breathtaking lan…
An Early Defense of Hood’s Georgia and Tennessee Campaigns
A month after his army had been routed in mid-December 1864 at Nashville, Gen. John B. Hood was at Tupelo, Miss., with his remaining troops. His superior, Gen. P.…
N.C. Town Remembers Potter’s Raid
With Pitt County’s proximity to Federal controlled areas of Eastern North Carolina, it experienced numerous encounters and clashes between the warring factions in…
Harvard Senior’s Death at Antietam: ‘Known But to be Loved’
On the morning of the bloodiest day of the Civil War, in a battle in which more than 130 soldiers in his 13th Massachusetts would become casualties, Samuel Shelto…
Civil War Events — January 2018
Before making plans to attend an event contact the event host. Deadlines for Advertising, Editorial or Events Submissions is the 20th of each month. Email to: ads…
Terry’s Texas Rangers Canteen
Often, when a soldier went for water he carried and filled as many canteens as he could so that his comrades could remain on the battle lines or in marching forma…
Small Talk — December 2017
1. The first Confederate major general to die in the war was not from battle causes—just old age. He was in fact the South’s oldest general, born in 1790 and dyin…
Riding with Sheridan
When an historical event is passing into legend, it helps to have a poem written about it. Thus we have Thomas Buchanan Read’s “Sheridan’s Ride,” based on the bat…
Message in a Bottle: How Antietam Soldier’s Remains were Identified
Shortly after the war, the grim task of disinterring bodies of Union soldiers from the Antietam battlefield and the immediate surrounding area fell to the United…
Explosive Device Found at Cedar Creek During Reenactment
MIDDLETOWN, Va.—Thankfully, the device discovered in a sutler’s tent during the recent reenactment of the Battle of Cedar Creek did not explode, but nevertheless…
136th N-SSA Nationals
WINCHESTER, Va.—On October 6-8, the North-South Skirmish Association held its 136th National Competition at its home range, Fort Shenandoah, near Winchester, Va.…
Civil War Events Nov.–Jan.
Shenandoah University’s McCormick Civil War Institute annual fall semester seminar and tour with Prof. Jonathan A. Noyalas—”Love Not, the One You Love May Die”: T…
The Siege After Hell
By Stephanie Hagiwara The Siege After Hell “Hell can’t be any worse than Battery Wagner. I have got out of that, and the other place ain’t going to worry me anymo…
Civil War Vengeance: Murder in the First!
By Joseph F. Wilson When a soldier falls in battle, he’s rightly mourned as a patriot and hero who died for his country. It’s quite a different story for a totall…
Battlefield Pickups & Fenian Parts Guns
By Joe Bilby Battlefield Pickups & Fenian Parts Guns I recently received some more material for my Civil War firearms in the field information file from my North…
The Graphic War — September 2017
The Graphic War By Salvatore Cilella An occasional article in a continuing series examining prints and printmakers during the Civil War. Trivia Question: where wa…
Reenactors Work Together, Achieve Success
Reenactors Work Together, Achieve Success By Joseph Bordonaro NEWPORT NEWS, Va.—“On to Richmond!” was the Union battle cry in 1862, so it was chosen for reenactin…
Civil War History for World War II Veterans
Civil War History for World War II Veterans ROCKAWAY, N.J—The Battle of The Bulge Assn. meets monthly at Picatinny Arsenal near the town of Rockaway, N.J., and is…
Still Going Strong at the N-SSA’s135th National Competition
Still Going Strong at the N-SSA’s135th National Competition By Bruce W. Miller We members of the NorthSouth Skirmish Association owe a great debt of gratitude to…
McCormick Civil War Institute Guides Transformation at Cool Spring Battlefield
McCormick Civil War Institute Guides Transformation at Cool Spring Battlefield By Jonathan A. Noyalas BLUEMONT, Va.—Although small by Civil War standards—13,000 t…
Macaria; Or, what Confederates read
By Stephen Davis Macaria; Or, what Confederates read Following the battle of Franklin, Nov. 30, 1864, Confederate Gen. John B. Hood had few tactical options when…
General Meade Society of Philadelphia’s Leister House Garden Restoration Project
General Meade Society of Philadelphia’s Leister House Garden Restoration Project GETTYSBURG, Penn.—The Lydia Leister house on the Gettysburg battlefield holds a s…
Confederate Battleflag
rendering at Gainesville, Ala., with Nathan Bedford Forrest. In our conversations with your cousin and yourself, you noted the Bradley family was close knit. Two…
Civil War Events Aug.–Oct.
Will be held at Bangor campus of University of Maine at Augusta, Texas Avenue, Bangor. Encampment, skirmishes, living history demonstrations and exhibits, guest s…
23rd Annual Battle of Sacramento, Kentucky
23rd Annual Battle of Sacramento, Kentucky By Gregory L. Wade SACRAMENTO, Ky.—The observance of the December 1861 Battle of Sacramento, Ky., was a late May succes…
Reenactors Make Film on the Third Battle of Winchester Possible
Last September, the Shenandoah Valley Battlefields National Historic District coordinated two days of film shooting on the Third Winchester Battlefield. The film…
Raymond, Mississippi Confederate Forlorn Hope in the Battles for Vicksburg
In the spring of 1863, Union Maj. Gen. Ulysses S. Grant crossed the Mississippi to begin the final phases of the Vicksburg campaign. The maneuver left Confederate…
If the South Had Won Gettysburg
Quick: what do Winston Churchill and Newt Gingrich have in common? Answer: Not much, but they both wrote an “alternative history” about how Robert E. Lee won the…
Fredericksburg And Spotsylvania Record Year
FREDERICKSBURG, Va.— As the National Park Service celebrated its Centennial year, Fredericksburg and Spotsylvania National Military Park recorded 969,895 visits t…
Battle Of Richmond, Kentucky
On 31 July 1862, Maj. Gen. Braxton Bragg met with Maj. Gen. Edmund Kirby Smith at Chattanooga, Tenn. Bragg commanded in Miss., with headquarters at Tupelo, and Sm…
This War So Horrible
“You may remember when I was talking of rejoining my Command in January last that I spoke of keeping a journal.” So begins “Camp Life, a History of the Georgia Ca…
Small Talk — May 2017
Let’s have some fun with Civil War trivia. Here are ten head-scratchers. Answers will be found on page 44. 1. Name the battle fought on June 10, 1864, near Tishom…
Cedar Creek And Belle Grove National Historical Park: An Emerging New Park
MIDDLETOWN, VA.—Students of the American Civil War are likely unfamiliar with “Cedar Creek and Belle Grove” unless the Shenandoah Valley campaigns came to their a…
Parker’s Crossroads Cemetery And Confederate Grave Site
Parker’s Crossroads Cemetery And Confederate Grave Site By Gregory L. Wade PARKER’S CROSSROADS, TENN.—Almost three years after announcing the new Tennessee State…
Historic Battle Mural Moved To Permanent Home
In this segment of Atlanta’s famous Cyclorama, Col. August Mersy’s Federal brigade attacks the South Carolinians of Brig. Gen. Arthur Manigault, who have broken t…
Emory Upton’s Star
Emory Upton went into the battle of Spotsylvania as a Colonel and supposedly was promoted to Brigadier General on the spot for his valiant attack on the Confedera…
A Wicked Fellow
“Action, prompt, vigorous action, is required. While we are deliberating the enemy is marching. King James lost three kingdoms for a mass. We may lose three State…
How Effective Was The Hospital Transport System?
“I was wounded Saturday p.m. I laid [sic] on the battlefield for 48 hours and then rode in a government wagon for 48 hours more. Last night at one o’clock my woun…
Battle Reenactments – A Photo Montage –
(All photos by Sandy Goss) By Sandy Goss CEDAR CREEK BATTLEFIELD—The second weekend in October saw the reenactment of the Battle of Cedar Creek and the Battle of…
Seesaw Slaughter At Cedar Mountain Commemorated
CULPEPER COUNTY, VA.—The newly organized Army of Northern Virginia under its commander, General Robert E. Lee undertook a daring campaign in early August of 1862.…
History, Competition And Camaraderie At The N-SSA 134th Nationals
The North-South Skirmish Association held its 134th National Competition October 5-9, 2016, at Fort Shenandoah near Winchester, Virginia. Member units competed in…
A Photographic ‘4-D’ Experience At Gettysburg
GETTYSBURG, PA.—It’s a special experience to tour the Gettysburg battlefield with a top-notch licensed battlefield guide who can answer every question and makes h…
154th Anniversary Of The Battle Of Perryville
PERRYVILLE, KY.—Thousands of reenactors converged on the small village of Perryville, Kentucky, to participate in recreating the battle that occurred there on Oct…
‘A Means Of Saving My Soul’: The Thomas Cox Bible
On July 9, 1864, Private Thomas Cox prepared for battle near the banks of the Monocacy River not knowing this battle would be his last. Prior to the Civil War, Co…
Telegraph Men
Let the telegraphers through; They’ll get us into a fight, And out of it, too.” Soldiers rhyme Both Abraham Lincoln and Jefferson Davis shared the problem of how…
Robert Sneden’s Map of Atlanta’s Confederate Defenses
Students of the Atlanta Campaign have long bemoaned the scarcity of reliable maps covering the operations of Generals Sherman, Johnston and Hood. One has popped u…
Battles and Leaders of the Civil War
Researching the American Civil War provides limitless opportunities to explore the battles, soldiers, commanding officers, and the various social, political, and…
A Tale Of Two Wars: Craig House
involved in military affairs. This time, the house was in use by an Army quartermaster who was using it as a headquarters. Monmouth Battlefield had been selected…
46 Days To Save An Army: Gen. John Corson Smith And The Chattanooga Campaign
On rare occasions, an historian is privileged to discover a previously unpublished primary source that has been hidden away in an attic for decades. Such was the…
The 23rd Ohio Volunteer Infantry’s Fiery Ordeal At Antietam
The dawn of September 17, 1862, was foggy and humid. The 23rd Ohio Volunteer Infantry lay by the east bank of the Antietam Creek. Three days’ prior, the regiment…
Patriot Guard Stop By Garryowen On A Special Mission
GARRYOWEN, MONT.—The Town of Garryowen, home of the Custer Battlefield Museum, received very special guests on a hot and sunny day on Wednesday, August 3. The Pat…
Confederate Nancy Hart Militia
From the years 1861-1865, America was involved in an emotional and deadly war, North vs. South, that resulted in six hundred twenty thousand deaths and lasted for…
Civil War Events Through Dec.
“Soldiers and Citizens” free museum at New England Via Vermont in Alburgh Village. Learn about the Civil War soldier and his family back home. Displays on camp li…
Battles and Leaders of the Civil War
Reflecting back on the September installment of this column, readers will recall coverage of The Southern Bivouac. In closing out publication of Bivouac, the new…
The Southern Bivouac
The Southern Bivouac Browsing through the various post-war publications containing accounts from former Federals and Confederates, one will usually land on the So…
East Meets West Event Labor Day Weekend
Labor Day Weekend GETTYSBURG, Pa.—This Labor Day weekend, a very unique event is coming to the Gettysburg area. Unusual, as it does not focus on the Battle of Get…
Civil War Events Through Nov.
“Soldiers and Citizens” free museum at New England Via Vermont in Alburgh Village. Learn about the Civil War soldier and his family back home. Displays on camp li…
155th Anniversary Battle Of First Manassas At Cedar Creek
David Chirico, 4th Virginia Cavalry “Blackhorse” sends a round into the attacking 2nd U.S. Cavalrymen charging toward him during the dusk encounter of the reenact…
153rd Gettysburg Battle Reenactment
GETTYSBURG, Pa.—The annual Gettysburg reenactment is largely considered the touchstone of such gatherings, especially during the major anniversary reenactment hel…
Gen. Sherman’s Blunder Led To McPherson’s Death
“McPherson dead!” Maj. Gen. William T. Sherman exclaimed on July 22, 1864, when officers told him that the commander of the Union Army of the Tennessee, Maj. Gen.…
Civil War Centennial Attraction Remembered On Facebook
NEW YORK—During the Civil War centennial commemoration, a history theme park in New York City featured a unique attraction – a wagon ride through a recreated batt…
Canadians Serving In Our American Civil War
GETTYSBURG, Pa.—While visiting the Gettysburg battlefield last summer, I noticed some people looking for certain grave markers in the National Cemetery. What caug…
Battle Of Glorieta Pass Reenactment
SANTA FE, N. Mex.—I had the pleasure of being a part of the First Texas Frontier Battery during the reenactment of the Battle of Glorieta Pass at the El Rancho de…
Zooming Into Gettysburg Photography
Within months of the Battle of Gettysburg, documentary cameramen captured some of the most compelling photos of the Civil War. And yet, even in the most well-know…
The First Emancipation Proclamation
In September 1862, a fierce battle was fought at a small Maryland town of Sharpsburg, also known as the Battle of Antietam by the Union, and Abraham Lincoln had b…
Saving The Falling Waters 1863 Battlefield In Maryland
During the Summer of 2002 Melissa Cooperson and I began the search for an old house as a weekend and vacation project. Our search took us to various areas in Virg…
Minié Ball Holes And Legendary Stories Invite You To Visit The Farnsworth House Inn
GETTYSBURG, PA.—Visiting Gettysburg is an adventure back in time in a still vibrant town. It is filled with battlefield sites, historic homes, businesses catering…
Living Historians Portrayed The USCC At Gettysburg
GETTYSBURG, PA.—The Battle of Gettysburg created carnage on a scale that was never exceeded during the American Civil War. John C. Chamberlain, a USCC volunteer a…
How A Professional Split Enhanced Photography At Gettysburg
The Battle of Gettysburg, the greatest clash of the Civil War, led to the finest photographic documentation of any fresh battlefield of the war, due in large meas…
History, Competition And Camaraderie At The N-SSA 133rd Nationals
WINCHESTER, VA — The North-South Skirmish Association held its 133rd National Competition May 20-22, 2016. At Fort Shenandoah near Winchester, Virginia member uni…
Halting Pickett’s Charge
Halting Pickett’s Charge “In every battle and on every important field there is one spot to which every army [officer] would wish to be assigned – the spot upon w…
German World War II POWs At Gettysburg Battlefield
GETTYSBURG, PA.—In the spring of 1944, America was heavily engaged in World War II, and men of the armed forces were fighting on many fronts in Europe against the…
Creating A Sibley Tent Site With A Crimean Stove – The First Maryland Experience –
WINCHESTER, VA.—The First/ Second Maryland is a group portraying Maryland’s Southern infantrymen during the Civil War. The unit has a campsite at the NorthSouth S…
Brigadier General Elon J. Farnsworth
GETTYSBURG, PA.—Brigadier General Elon John Farnsworth is the only high ranking Union officer killed in the Civil War at Gettysburg who is not remembered on the b…
North Carolina Museum Hosts 26th Annual Battle Reenactment
WASHINGTON COUNTY, N.C.—Every year for the last quarter of a century, the Historical Society of Washington County has faithfully hosted an event to commemorate th…
Long Island’s North Shore Civil War Roundtable President’s Long Legacy
After running 200 meetings, producing 200 copies of the newsletter and organizing eight trips south to tour battlefields, Andrew Athanas has decided it’s time to…
CSS Teaser
CSS Teaser Mrs. Susan Archer Weiss, eye-witness, Battle of Hampton Roads wrote “...the little Teaser (commanded by Capt. Webb) pushed her way in between the Patri…
151st Battle Of Selma
SELMA, Ala.—The 151st Reenactment of the April 2, 1865 Battle of Selma was held April 20-24. Although hundreds of spectators attended the event, the turnout was n…
“Called To Duty” Movie’s First Screening
MANALAPAN TOWNSHIP, N.J.—When most people think of Monmouth Battlefield in New Jersey, they think of the Revolutionary War. The Battle of Monmouth, on June 28, 17…
Atlas To The O.R.s
Atlas To The O.R.s Preparing to launch his 1862 Valley Campaign, Major General Thomas J. Jackson turned to his topographer, Jedediah Hotchkiss, and asked him to “…
Through The Lens — April 2016
“Heavy shells were falling fast and thick” a Confederate later wrote. “It seems as if the whole heavens were ablaze with thunder and lightning.” As part of the Un…
South Carolina Reenactor Jerry W. Cauthan Dies
South Carolina Reenactor Jerry W. Cauthan Dies By Maj. Dan Gregory Hampton’s Legion Cavalry, Palmetto Battalion POINT SOUTH, S.C. Battle of Pocotaligo, S.C. — At…
Center Shot: Private Jacob Miller Of The 9th Indiana Vol. Infantry
Of the 24,430 wounded Union and Confederate soldiers who fought in the Battle of Chickamauga, in Georgia, one veteran stands out as the most unusual survivor of t…
Battle Of Aiken Commemorated At Bee Memorial Park
When General Hugh Judson Kilpatrick left Aiken, South Carolina – 151 years ago – he was in a hurry. General Joe Wheeler’s Confederate troopers ran the Union caval…
Teresa Roane Is Finding Blacks Who Fought For Confederacy
Teresa Roane Is Finding Blacks Who Fought For Confederacy By Nancy Jennis Olds BRANDY STATION, VA. — Did blacks serve in the Confederate States military or were t…
Pamplin Park Is Restoring Breakthrough Battle Scene
PETERSBURG, Va. – In January Pamplin Historical Park began a major scene restoration that will allow visitors to see much more of the Breakthrough Battlefield as…
Mathew Brady’s Upstate New York Birthplace Debated
Mathew Brady’s Upstate New York Birthplace Debated By Paul Post JOHNSBURG, N.Y. — The thief who stole a historical marker dedicated to Mathew Brady, the Civil War…