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.

One of America's most talented wartime journalists, George Alfred Townsend, visited Gettysburg in June 1867. "Gath," as he signed his reports, wandered town, talked to locals, and toured the battlefield where North and South fought four years earlier. Here's part of his story.

First Lt. Jeremiah Hoffman of the 142nd Pennsylvania Infantry suffered a serious wound during the first day of fighting at Gettysburg. He was transported to the Lutheran Theological Seminary for treatment. His vivid, haunting recollections tell us of life inside the building during the uncertain ...