Civil War Articles

My Worst Fears Have Been More Than Realized" : Yellow Fever Hits The Union By Robert Macomber

By late summer in 1864, the fighting between the Union and Confederate navies included the well publicized battles of Mobile and Cherbourg, where Farragut and Winslow scored their decisive victories and earned ever lasting fame...

The Surgeons of Gettysburg By Joel Rubenstein, M.D.

The medical aspects of the great Civil War battle at Gettysburg are an often overlooked subject. Although countless books and articles have been written about generals, weapons, and tactics, a description of the surgeons who cared for the wounded is also an important topic....

“…from whence no traveler returns…” Robert Rodes and the Men Who Served Him
By Jason Amico

Casualties on the opening day of the Battle of Gettysburg (July 1, 1863) were quite high for Major General Robert E. Rodes’ Division of Lieutenant General Richard S. Ewell’s Corps, Army of Northern Virginia.

The Confederacy’s “Other” Army: The Army of Tennessee
By Michael Brasher

Most people with at least some knowledge of the Civil War invariably think of Lee’s army – the Army of Northern Virginia – when a mention is made of the Confederate army. This is perfectly understandable. Robert E. Lee, Stonewall Jackson....

“Good Logistics is Combat Power”: Sherman, Atlanta, and the Sinews of War
By Michael Brasher

While discussing the part he played in Operation Desert Shield/Desert Storm, Lieutenant General William G. Pagonis noted that his logistical organization’s vision was captured in the slogan “Good Logistics is Combat Power.”

A General Without His Due: John Curtis Caldwell, Brevet Major General USV
By Patricia Caldwell

All too often Civil War history is known only by the Grants, the Lees, the Jacksons and the Shermans. The real history is instead a composite of the division and brigade commanders, the regimental colonels and the private soldiers. ....

“I’se So ‘Fraid God's Killed Too”: The Children Of Vicksburg
By Patricia Caldwell

All too often we think of the Civil War as a contest between two opposing armies. In fact, many battles were fought in virtually unoccupied areas. However, there were indeed those conflicts whose resolutions would only come about after the upheaval and destruction of civilian lives....

From Aldie to Winchester: Touring Route 50
By Joe Pickett

West bound on Route 50 from Washington, D.C. to Winchester, Va., the rising sun warms the Shenandoah Valley, where little has changed since the days when the War Between the States tore this vital region, and a nation, asunder.

Southern Women Record the War
By Rochelle Ramga
The American Civil War is often described as the first modern war, a war not only between armed men in battle, but total war waged upon the ability of the enemy nation to make war. Total war rains destruction upon the unarmed civilians in their homes, factories and fields.

"New Market Echoes"
By Richard Lewis
Like so many places in the South, the Civil War left its indelible mark on the Virginia Military Institute. The cadet barracks building still bears the scars of its 1864 destruction. The VMI post is littered with monuments and memorials that remind modern-day cadets and visitors of VMI's outstanding combat record during the 1860s.

The Legacy of Ball's Bluff
By Patricia Caldwell
Ball's Bluff. It doesn't evoke the passions of mighty Gettysburg, or approach the ferocity of Cold Harbor. The action at Ball's Bluff never engendered the feelings of a people as did the siege of Vicksburg. It doesn't even earn a footnote in the majority of American History books....

First Blood In The Streets of Baltimore
By Gary Baker
Since the earliest days of the American colonies there had been significant political, religious, social and economic differences between the northern and southern regions of the United States. Throughout the early 1800's these differences had grown greater and greater causing a schism to develop between these two regions....

General John D. Imboden and the Confederate Retreat from Gettysburg
By Heather K. Peake
It was the evening of July 3, 1863, and General Robert E. Lee faced a serious problem. The Battle of Gettysburg was over; his massive assault on the Union center had failed; his troops were spent; it was time to depart the field. He needed to get his army back to the safety of Virginia, and the sooner the better, for if the Union army caught its breath and went on the attack, the whole cause could be lost....

The Right Arm of Custer: Colonel James H. Kidd, 6th Michigan Cavalry
by Dan Waumbaugh
As the last of the apple blossoms were swept away by the groundskeepers, and the slight chill that had been in the Michigan air for over 6 months was finally gone, hundreds of young men scrambled this way and that, desperately trying to make it to their final exams.

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