Monthly Archives: April 2015
2010 Virginia Sesquicentennial Signature Conference
The 2010 conference was held at Norfolk State University in Norfolk, Virginia, with the theme, “Race, Slavery, and the Civil War: The Tough Stuff of American History and Memory.” There were three sessions and you can see them here: Session One: “Historians discussed the experiences of both enslaved and free blacks during the Civil War. After […]
Reminiscences of the Civil War
This is John B. Gordon’s memoir of the Civil War. You can download it to read for free here, here, and here. This is a very useful book for students of the war, but it has to be handled very, very carefully. It’s very difficult to tell what is true and what isn’t true, and […]
DC Emancipation and 19th-Century Life
Here’s a panel discussion at the National Archives on life in the District of Columbia and the emancipation of its slaves. From the video’s description: “What was 19th-century life like for enslaved and free African Americans in Washington, DC? What was the impact of DC Emancipation in and around the city? A distinguished panel discusses […]
Their Last Full Measure: The Final Days of the Civil War
This is Joseph Wheelan monotonously reading a presentation about his book, Their Last Full Measure: The Final Days of the Civil War. This was at the National Archives. I give him a “D” grade for the presentation. I also have problems with his content regarding William T. Sherman. And please, when are we going to be […]
Memories
This is a book by Fannie A. Beers, who was a confederate nurse during the Civil War. Born and raised in Connecticut, she married a southerner, Augustus Beers, in the 1850s and moved to New Orleans. Her husband was a soldier in the 1st Louisiana Battalion and she volunteered at hospitals near where his unit […]
Marching Home: Union Veterans and Their Unending Civil War
Here’s Brian Matthew Jordan at the National Archives giving a presentation based on his book, Marching Home: Union Veterans and Their Unending Civil War. From the video’s description: “Civil War historian Brian Matthew Jordan describes how veterans—left tending rotting wounds, battling alcoholism, and campaigning for paltry pensions—realized that they stood as unwelcome reminders to a new […]
When Sherman Marched North From the Sea
This short book by Jacqueline Glass Campbell is packed with information. She starts by giving us a glimpse of some of Maj. Gen. William T. Sherman’s thinking: “Conventional wisdom tells us that in wartime men are both the protectors and the threat. The army regulates the exercise of violence against an enemy and exacts kudos […]
President Lincoln Assassinated!!: The Firsthand Story of the Murder, Manhunt, Trial, and Mourning
This is Lincoln scholar Harold Holzer giving a talk at the National Archives based on his new book, President Lincoln Assassinated!!: The Firsthand Story of the Murder, Manhunt, Trial, and Mourning. I think he does a good job presenting the images and perhaps debunking a very famous quotation from John Wilkes Booth regarding Lincoln’s last public address.
A Finger in Lincoln’s Brain: What Modern Science Reveals about Lincoln, His Assassination, and Its Aftermath
This is Dr. E. Lawrence Abel giving an interesting presentation at the National Archives about what some scientific investigations into Lincoln’s assassination have revealed. From the video’s description: “E. Lawrence Abel sheds light on the details surrounding the death of Abraham Lincoln, including John Wilkes Booth’s illness, the alleged medical treatment the wounded President received, […]
Student of the American Civil War 
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