Shelter for the Soldiers
Movies that depict the Civil War, you will often see a camp scene at some point during it. It might be early in the morning just as a hazy, blue [...]
The City That Didn’t Celebrate
For most people living in America, July 4th brings to mind that day back in 1776 when the 13 colonies officially declared themselves independent of Great Britain, thus creating the [...]
The Tale of Scott County and Independence
When the Civil War began in 1861, Tennessee was the final state to secede and join the Confederacy. It did so despite the objections of residents in the eastern part [...]
The Notorious General Hood
An ill-mannered man with streaks of wildness, nonconformity, and sometimes drunkenness. Battered, beaten, discredited and a hopeless cripple. No evidence of mental brilliance. History has not been kind to John [...]
Memorial Day’s Civil War Roots
Memorial Day was born out of need after the Civil War. A war-torn United States was faced with the task of burying and honoring the 600,000 to 800,000 Union and [...]
The Rich Man’s War
Grover Cleveland, future President of the United States, never served in the military during the Civil War. He was healthy, of the appropriate age, and educated. His law practice provided [...]
Captured in Women’s Clothing? Fact or Fiction.
Almost 200 years ago, General Benjamin Dudley Pritchard and the 4th Michigan Cavalry effectively ended the Civil War. It was May 10, 1865 when they captured Jefferson Davis, President of [...]
Unrequited Love and General Sherman
On the banks of the Etowah river, which runs through the beautiful north Georgia landscape, stood the historic Etowah Heights mansion, the only building for miles around not destroyed by [...]
Andersonville: Hell on Earth
“I don’t know for whom I am keeping this Diary,” Corporal Samuel J. Gibson wrote on August 12, 1864. “I still have hope that I will yet outlive this misfortune [...]
“Hellmira” Prison Camp
On July 6, 1864, 400 Confederate prisoners of war marched from Erie Train Station to the camp, becoming the first of 12,123 prisoners held in Elmira. This camp quickly became [...]