History remembers John Clifford Pemberton as the Northern-born Confederate general who surrendered his forces garrisoning the Mississippi River fortress city of Vicksburg on July 4, 1863. Following his death in Philadelphia in 1881, a local newspaper remembered "the doom of a beaten man was on hi...

If you search military service records for Cullen Bullard Aubrey, you will not find his name and deeds mentioned. Nonetheless, the teenaged runaway saw as much of the war as most enlisted men when he attached himself to the Iron Brigade and became known as the "Newsboy of the Army of the Potomac....

What do Southern citizen accounts say about being occupied? Here's one, an early war account from the diary of Sarah Fowler Morgan, whose family was divided by secession and the hostilities that followed.

Sarah Fowler Morgan, a resident of Baton Rouge and New Orleans during the war years, remained loyal to the Confederacy through its trials and tribulations. In April 1865, she shared her feelings about the surrender by Gen. Robert E. Lee of his army and the assassination of President Abraham Lincoln.

Captain Allen L. Fahnestock of the 86th Illinois Infantry posed with his Henry Repeating Rifle, which, according to his account, was one of the first two of these firearms to arrive in Union-occupied Nashville. Here's the story about this most desirable—and deadly—weapon.

Sudents of the Civil War know that technical innovations developed or advanced during the conflict played an important role in history: ironclad warships, use of railroads and the telegraph, repeating rifles, medical and surgical practice, to name a few. Here's another one: the portable photograp...

Dreams were as important to the Civil War generation as during any time in human history. The Currier & Ives lithograph pictured here popularized soldier dreams of home, and Abraham Lincoln's dreams were believed to be symbolic and prophetic. Here are revelatory dreams had by soldiers before battle.

The death of Capt. André Cailloux, commanding Company E of the 1st Louisiana Native Guards, at Port Hudson spread shock waves through New Orleans—and one of the largest funeral processions in the city's history. It also prompted larger questions about race and identity.

After the initial burst of patriotism, the quintessential citizen-soldier in an infantry regiment is left to ponder existential questions that haunt almost every soldier who makes it onto a battlefield for the first time: How will I perform in combat? Willie Rexford answered these questions in 18...

William Crawford Smith is remembered in architectural history for his designs of buildings on the campus of Vanderbilt University. Yet he also served in the Civil and Spanish-American Wars. Here's his story.

The memoirs of Lt. Gen. and President Ulysses S. Grant are filled with subtle—and not so subtle—commentaries. Here's one, which appears at the end of his second volume, and it speaks to American power and the future.

On a January day in 1864, Confederate Capt. Nathaniel Sturdivant and his patrol arrived at Cherry Grove, a landing along Virginia’s James River, to seek out the enemy. He and his men soon found them in the town of Smithfield. Here's what happened next.

James Wheaton Converse Jr., an 18-year-old sergeant in the 24th Massachusetts Infantry, distinguished himself in combat along the North Carolina coast in early 1862. Recognized by his superiors for gallantry, he went on to prove himself again in Louisiana. Here's the story.

He signed his name as "X" in his dispatches to the Richmond Enquirer, and filled newspaper columns with hope and steadied nerves that supported the citizens of the capital and elsewhere across the South as they fought for independence. He is Edward A. Pollard, and here's an example of his narrative.

It is easy to overlook the Civil War service of Benjamin Harrison, the 23rd President of the United States. In 1862, when his home state of Indiana struggled to meet its quota of volunteers called to arms by President Abraham Lincoln, Harrison stepped up. Here's what happened.

News of the Union victory at the Battle of Franklin made its way across the North, with early reports filed by correspondents. One of these writers, 1st Lt. Daniel Royse, who started the war in the 40th Indiana Infantry and served as an aide to Brig. Gen. George D. Wagner, detailed the action in ...

Magnus Brucker fled the failed German Revolution of 1848 and rebuilt his life in Indiana as a physician and politician. During the Civil War, he served as surgeon of the 23rd Indiana Infantry, fighting slavery’s expansion while caring for soldiers across major campaigns. Here's his story.

Captain George “Van” Vanderbilt’s quick thinking and bold leadership along the Warrenton Road stalled Confederate advances, buying critical time for his 10th New York Cavalry to form for action on the morning of the Battle of Bristoe Station. Here's the story.

"Though the Friends of Liberty Die, Liberty Itself Is Immortal."

At the Battle of Chancellorsville, there came a moment when Col. William J. Sewell and his New Jersey Brigade, including Michael Clancy, faced overwhelming odds with no orders to retire and no reinforcements on the way. There was no honorable option but to charge—and they did.

Franklin F. Pratt, who served in the ranks of the 76th New York Infantry, and the rest of Maj. Gen. John Reynolds 1st Corps faced the Confederate juggernaut during the first day of fighting at Gettysburg. Pratt wrote a letter to his parents to explain what happened—and how he fared.

During the Civil War, Kentucky's Basil W. Duke, a respected Confederate brigadier general, met fellow Kentuckian and guerrilla fighter Champ Ferguson, a man he described as "the most celebrated and successful exponent of this irregular warfare." Here's his recollection.

For three days in October 1865, Maj. Gen. Winfield Scott Hancock, staff, and friends, toured the battlefield of Gettysburg. For Hancock, walking and riding the grounds in company with historian John Batchelder made the visit a memorable and newsworthy event.

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.