The thought of Civil War Richmond brings to mind scenes of devastation and destruction caused by Confederates as they abandoned the city in early April, 1865. But there is also the Richmond of 1861, where patriotic fervor for the nascent Confederacy exploded in the wake of the bombardment of Fort...

John Gibbon, the Union-loyal major general from North Carolina, is associated with the Iron Brigade, the defense of Pickett's Charge at Gettysburg, and the last campaigns that culminated at Appomattox. Long after the war he met up with a friend in Virginia to hunt. Here's the story.

Benjamin Franklin Whitehouse of the 1st Ohio Heavy Artillery was a proud member of the Grand Army of the Republic, As the years passed, and the veterans' hair grayed, Whitehouse wrote of their sacrifices and contributions. Here's a sampling from his papers.

On July 5, 1863, Corp. William S. White and his fellow artillerists in the Richmond Howitzers withdrew from Pennsylvania to Virginia in the wake of the loss at the Battle of Gettysburg. White overheard Gen. Robert E. Lee talking to Gen. Richard Ewell. Here's what Lee said.

Major Gen. Philip Henry Sheridan, known as "Little Phil" to his friends, had a big personality—and a front row seat at the surrender of Gen. Robert E. Lee to Lt. Gen. Ulysses S. Grant. In his 1885 memoirs, Sheridan recalls the event, and Grant's character as a man and a leader.

A subscriber recently commented: "Did Lee or his Chief of Staff write an after action report that survives? That would be a great insightful document." He did, and the entire report is 7,406 words long. I read it, and found six takeaways to share.

Elisha Rice Reed, who served in the ranks of the Iron Brigade's 2nd Wisconsin Infantry, suffered wounds in both legs during the first day's fighting at Gettysburg. As a prisoner of war in the Seminary, he watched Pickett's Charge from the cupola of the distinctive brick building.

What was it like to be an artillerist in action during the bombardment that preceded Pickett's Charge? William S. White, a corporal in the 3rd Company of the Richmond Howitzers, described the scene in his diary, and what happened after the guns fell silent.

Immediately following the death of Ulysses S. Grant on July 23, 1885, a reporter interviewed former Confederate Gen. James Longstreet at his home outside Gainesville, Ga. Longstreet paid tribute to his late friend and shared memories of war and peace.

Private Benjamin Franklin Whitehouse of the 1st Ohio Heavy Artillery had his first night on guard duty at Fort Burnside in Covington, Ky. During his watch, he spied movement and saw a figure moving toward him. He eventually fired a shot. Here's what happened next.

In the papers of Benjamin Franklin Whitehouse of the 1st Ohio Heavy Artillery can be found two poems, both copied in long hand, that reveal in poignant verse the dwindling numbers of Grand Army of the Republic veterans as the years passed.

During the aftermath of the Battle of Gettysburg, Helen Gilson lent her considerable skills as a compassionate caregiver to Union and Confederate wounded. At one point, a patient asked her to sing. The song she chose moved Northern and Southern hearts,

John Buford, one of the most respected Union generals, displayed grit and determination on the first day of the Battle of Gettysburg. After the war, one of Buford's staffers, 1st Lt. and Signal Corps officer Aaron B. Jerome, worried that history would forget Buford. So he wrote a letter to promot...

One of the top correspondents in the American press during the Civil War, the Boston Journal's Charles Carleton Coffin, arrived at Gettysburg after the first day's fighting. His description of Pickett's Charge, from the Union side, is vivid, poetic prose.

Captain Edward Carlisle Boynton, a West Point educated veteran of the Mexican War who returned to teach at his alma mater during the Civil War, wrote a paper published in 1864 that called for the establishment of a military Bureau of Photography. He was a man ahead of his time—by more than a half...

The after-action report of Lt. Col. Walton Dwight of the 149th Pennsylvania Infantry, popularly known as the Second Bucktail Regiment, tells the tale of a tough choice no senior officer would wish to make—to save your regiment or abandon your colors. Here's the story.

The capture of Jefferson Davis in Georgia about five weeks after he fled the Confederate capital was heralded throughout the country. His confinement raised a novel question: Now that the government had taken the ex-President into custody, what exactly were they to do with him?

Basil W. Duke numbered among five Confederate brigadier generals who escorted President Jefferson Davis as he fled from the Confederate capital after Union forces captured the city on April 3, 1865. Duke recalled Davis state of mind when he called a council of war.

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.

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...

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.

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.