Many people believe the first recorded gold strike was at Sutter's Mill in Northern California in 1848. They are mistaken. In this episode, we'll see who, where and when was the first official recorded gold strike in California.

After weeks of maneuvers and minor skirmishing, the Northern Virginia Campaign is about to reach its climax on the familiar battleground of Manassas, where thirteen months earlier the Union Army had suffered a humiliating defeat in the first major battle of the Civil War. This time, however, Unio...

Months after the disastrous battle of Shiloh and the fall of the vital rail junction of Corinth, Mississippi, Major General Braxton Bragg is chosen by President Jefferson Davis to lead the revitalized Confederate forces in the western theater against the stagnating Federal troops under Major Gene...

After the fall of Corinth to Halleck's gigantic at the end of May 1862, many Confederates dream of retaking the vital rail junction in Northern Mississippi. However, with the Federal forces under Ulysses S Grant and William Rosecrans anchoring their new defensive line on the town, it will prove t...

After weeks of marching around Tennessee and Kentucky, the Confederate Army of Mississippi under the command of General Braxton Bragg nears its ultimate prize. The jewel of Kentucky, the city of Louisville. Yet, due to decisions made while dealing with the pesky Munfordville garrison, Don Carlos ...

The story of a 'superweapon' designed to break the stalemate of siege warfare in the Crimea using all the industrial might Victorian Britain had to offer. This massive 36in mortar could fire a 2900lb shell nearly two miles - built in 1854 as a Crimean War superweapon by Robert Mallet, an Irish g...

With England under threat of invasion, these 'Martello' towers were built all along the shores of Southern and Southeast England. Filmed at the Slaughden Martello Tower in Aldeburgh, Suffolk, England, one of 74 Martellos built in England between 1804-1814 as part of the British preparations for a...

Learn more about the fights at Cross Keys, Port Republic, and Piedmont through animated maps, primary sources, and historic images in the program!

Civil War Digital Digest's host Will stops on the way home from vacation to talk with Patrick Craddock, owner of The Craftsman’s Apron. In his quest to make inspired regalia for modern masons, Patrick draws on his year as a living historian and studying masons from the Civil War era. Enjoy a conv...

After the devastating defeat at the Battle of Pea Ridge in March and the shameful departure by Major General Earl Van Dorn back across the Mississippi, Arkansas has been left in a state of anarchy. With no coherent Confederate force to assert authority from Richmond and the Federals on the verge ...

When the Missouri Division pulls out of Northwest Arkansas to reinforce Grant's efforts against Vicksburg, Hindman sees an opportunity forming for his army to get back to Missouri. With only Blunt left in the region to defend the border, Hindman draws up a plan to bag the Kansas Division and use ...

He never saw battle.
He never fired a shot.
But in 1863, William Laird, a mentally challenged young man from Maine, was executed by a Union Army firing squad.
This is one of the most tragic and forgotten stories of the Civil War.

Meet four men who all fought for the Union at Gettysburg. They all had different fates. They all left items behind. View the items. Hear the stories. Enjoy the history!

Experience the story of a military patrol marching through a small town during the bloodiest year of America’s deadliest conflict. The young northern soldiers who seek to detect enemy combatants find what they looking for, but also discover a much more disturbing and thought-provoking truth.

In early 1862 in western Virginia several massive Federal armies were moving towards the Shenandoah Valley, known as "The Breadbasket of the Confederacy". If these Union forces could unite din the Valley and move east to attack Richmond - the Confederate capitol - the rebellion would be crushed.
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In this episode, Andrew and Will talk with historian Phil Spaugy about four terms used for long arms during the Civil War. They look at the definition of these terms, the evolution from one to the next, and a bit of the history to tie it all together. Enjoy this program in it's expanded form, giv...

For almost 5 weeks since the staggering Battle of Antietam, the two sides stared each other down as neither side moved. While Lee was rebuilding his strength, McClellan found every excuse not to move forward and attack the rebels. With the midterms and winter near, Lincoln tried his best to get h...

Since the Battle of Antietam back in September, the Confederate and Federal armies have stared the other down for the last few months of 1862. However, after a change of command for the Federal army, a prompted Burnside decides to lead his men on a winter campaign that will bring him to the very ...