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Photo Essays
Stories of the Civil War as told through series of captivating images
12
Published: 2/6/25
Civil War Fashion, Part 1
Dive into the world of Civil War fashion through images of distinctive uniforms and personal styles adopted by people in the 1860s.
12
Published: 11/25/24
Civil War Punishments
Discover the various methods used to discipline soldiers during the Civil War.
20
Published: 11/11/24
Civil War Veterans, Part 1
Over 3 million men served as soldiers or sailors during the Civil War; well over 2 million of them survived the ordeal to return home. As they adjusted to civilian...
11
Published: 10/14/24
Wartime Voting
“It is not too much to say that the election which has just passed over in such significant and remarkable quiet was one of the most momentous that ever challenged...
12
Published: 8/12/24
Odd Civil War Photos, Pt. 1
The Civil War was the most widely covered conflict of the 19th century. While sketch artists followed the armies and captured, as best they could, scenes of camp and battle,...
8
Published: 5/27/24
Sailing in the Air
“If we may believe the poets and fabulists, the idea of sailing in the air is no new one. Every school-boy knows the story of Daedalus and his son Icarus,...
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Published: 11/23/23
Thanksgiving Day
“It has seemed to me fit and proper that they should be solemnly, reverently and gratefully acknowledged as with one heart and voice by the whole American people. I do...
10
Published: 9/15/23
Hints to Soldiers
The Soldier in Our Civil War, a multi-volume work about the Civil War published in 1893, showcases many of the illustrations that appeared during the conflict in Frank Leslie’s Illustrated Newspaper. The...
11
Published: 5/24/23
Elmer Ellsworth’s Civil War
On May 24, 1861, 24-year-old Elmer E. Ellsworth—colonel of the 11th New York Infantry—was shot and killed by the pro-secessionist proprietor of the Marshall House, an inn located in Alexandria,...
10
Published: 12/16/22
The Holiday Season During War
How did Americans observe Christmas and the New Year during the Civil War? Illustrated newspapers, like Harper’s Weekly and Frank Leslie’s, published many illustrations throughout the conflict that showed readers how their fellow countrymen marked...
12
Published: 7/21/22
First Bull Run
On July 21, 1861, Union and Confederate forces clashed just north of Manassas, Virginia, in the war’s first major land battle. The engagment brought together inexperienced northern and southern volunteers,...
11
Published: 4/14/22
Assassination Artifacts
“That is the last speech he will ever make.” So remarked John Wilkes Booth on April 11, 1865, after listening to President Abraham Lincoln deliver remarks outside the White House....
9
Published: 1/14/22
The Emancipation Proclamation
On January 1, 1863, the Emancipation Proclamation—which declared “that all persons held as slaves” within the rebellious states “are, and henceforward shall be free”—went into effect. Drafted the previous summer, and...
16
Published: 10/15/21
The Mountain Campaigns in Georgia
Published in 1890, The Mountain Campaigns in Georgia—a slim volume devoted to telling the story of the battles fought in the war’s western theater along the Western & Atlantic Railroad—boasted a...
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Published: 7/18/21
The 54th Massachusetts at Fort Wagner
On July 18, 1863, Union troops commanded by Brigadier General Quincy Gillmore launched an attack on Fort Wagner, the Confederate bastion that protected Morris Island, located south of Charleston Harbor—part...
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Published: 3/17/21
St. Patrick’s Day, 1863
On March 17, 1863, Irish Brigade commander Thomas Francis Meagher hosted elaborate festivities to mark St. Patrick’s Day. The celebration featured a number of races and prizes—and, as one Union soldier...
12
Published: 10/16/20
John Brown’s Raid
In October 1859, abolitionist John Brown led a raid on the federal armory at Harpers Ferry, Virginia, in hopes of obtaining the necessary weapons to arm a successful slave insurrection throughout...
8
Published: 8/7/20
Road Trip: Petersburg to Appomattox
Few regions offer a denser concentration of Civil War history than Central Virginia. The historical significance of the region is reason enough to visit, but the fact that you can retrace...
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