In late 1863, formerly enslaved men arrived in St. Louis from points South to join the United States Colored Troops. Many brought their families. All suffered from neglect until early 1864, when Brig. Gen. William A. Pile and other officers stepped in to help.

According to news reports, the two years Jefferson Davis in Fortress Monroe following his capture in May 1865 took a significant toll on his physical and his mental health. Two eyewitness accounts reveal his state of mind and his appearance.

The Battle of the Crater is remembered as a debacle for the Union Army—the large loss of life and leadership failures are engraved in the American memory. For the Confederates who suffered the blast of the underground mine, it proved the courage and quick action of Maj. Gen. William Mahone.

Union soldiers held as prisoners of war in the South during the presidential campaign of 1864 could not cast a vote for Abraham Lincoln or George B. McClellan. But their captivity did not prevent them from staging mock elections. Here's one of those elections, held at Camp Sorghum outside Columbi...

After Maj. Gen. Francis C. Barlow moved his division from its position to Blocher's Knoll north of Gettysburg on July 1, Confederate attackers took advantage of the gaps he created. One of the regiments that bore the brunt of the attack was the 17th Connecticut Infantry. This is the story of one ...

Captain John Gregory Bishop Adams proved his fighting mettle in many battles with his comrades in the 19th Massachusetts Infantry and the rest of the Army of the Potomac. His gallantry at Fredericksburg, where he saved the regimental colors, earned him the Medal of Honor. Here's his story.

Subscriber John VanSant shared a letter written in 1864 by Capt. Richard Waterman of the 31st Indiana Infantry. In it, he describes an experience on the picket line during the Atlanta Campaign. I've told Waterman's story before, and this letter is new to me.

The 38th Virginia Infantry suffered a significant number of casualties at Gettysburg, including William B. Chatten, who suffered a gunshot wound in his left arm on July 3 and fell into enemy hands the next day. Thus began a trip to Fort Delaware, where he met his fate.

In late July 1863, the cessation of prisoners exchanges became clear to the Confederate government in Richmond—prompting a crisis that threatened the fate of the Southern armies. A fiery editorial in the Richmond Dispatch tells the tale of woe.

First Lt. Edward Burgin Knox of the 11th New York Infantry, a friend of the late Elmer Ellsworth who established the U.S. Zouave Cadets before the Civil War, fought at the First Battle of Bull Run. His vivid letter describing the battle includes a rallying cry in his lamented friend's honor.

On April 9, 1885, the twentieth anniversary of the surrender at Appomattox, the Boston Globe published an interview with former Confederate Maj. Gen. William Mahone about his part in the final days of the Army of Northern Virginia. Here's what he remembered.

Every monument at Gettysburg tells a story. And so it is with the monument to the 13th Vermont Infantry, located near the Copse of Trees, the focal point of Pickett's Charge at Gettysburg. The statue of the officer on the memorial, Stephen F. Brown, carried an axe into the fight.

Narratives by Civil War generals sharing their opinions about the momentous battles and campaigns abound. Far less numerous are such writings by private soldiers. Here's one, by John Joseph Bowen of the Richmond Howitzers, that takes a different view of the Battle of Gettysburg.

I’m always on the lookout for obscure references to the character and habits of momentous figures who shaped and influenced the political, military, an cultural forces of the Civil War period. I found a number of such references in a book by John W. Forney, a political insider with allegiances to...

On April 26, 1865, on a wharf at Helena, Ark., photographer Thomas W. Bankes captured the steamboat Sultana packed with about 2,130 souls—almost 2,000 of them Union ex-prisoners-of-war. Soon, about 1,200 of them would be dead. One of the survivors, Corp. Erastus Winters of the 50th Ohio Infantry,...

President Abraham Lincoln's 272-word address at Gettysburg stands as a literary masterpiece, completely overshadowing the more than 13,000-word address delivered by renowned orator Edward Everett. Thought rarely quoted, it is a meritorious work. Here's the story.

Following Gettysburg, Maj. Gen. George G. Meade’s caution reflected his newness to command and his belief that Robert E. Lee’s battered but dangerous army could still inflict serious harm. Meade’s own words after the battle reveal the personal weight behind decisions later criticized in Washington.

Following the Battle of Gettysburg, public opinion was forming a first draft of history on the performance of Maj. Gen. George G. Meade. The reviews were mixed. Did he deserve credit for victory at the crossroads Pennsylvania town in July 1863? Here's who one editorial writer believed should have...

William Tecumseh Sherman is credited by historians as pioneering total war. Almost two years before Sherman’s March through Georgia, the idea of taking off the kid gloves and fighting a hard war was expressed in no uncertain terms by Union 2nd Lt. James E. McBeth.

Of the many alternative names for the Civil War, the Brothers' War represents the shared sacrifice of families on both sides of the conflict. It enjoyed a wave of popularity during the reunification period in the early 20th century. One of the many anecdotes comes from the border state of Kentucky.

William Pratt Parks, Mississippi-born and Arkansas-raised, left college in 1861 to join the Confederate army. His service as an artillery officer in the Western and Trans-Mississippi Theaters, a stint on the ironclad "Arkansas," and his postwar career in politics reveal his character.

2nd Lt. Samual D. Brooks of the 1st Kentucky Cavalry and his trusted charger, Yeager, served together through much of the Civil War

The lore of the Civil War is filled with the stories of mascot dogs who followed the armies on camp and campaign. One of these intrepid canines served in the Orphan Brigade, Frank was his name, and he followed the men of Company B of the 2nd Kentucky Infantry. Here's his story.

The 1864 Savannah Campaign, better known as Maj. Gen. William T. Sherman's March to the Sea, left behind a wake of destruction that had been a lightning rod for criticism ever since. One of the participants, 1st Lt. Frederick W. Fout of the 15th Indiana Light Artillery, shared his perspective in ...