Lieutenant Nathan Huntley Edgerton, Sgt. Maj. Thomas R. Hawkins, and Sergeant Alexander Kelly of the 6th Regiment U.S. Colored Troops carry forward the regiment's colors as it presses its attack at Chaffin's Farm in a painting titled "Three Medals of Honor" by artist Don Troiani.

Civil War

The 16th U.S. President, Abraham Lincoln guided the nation during the turbulent years of the American Civil War years.

Civil War

President Abraham Lincoln & The American Civil War

by Mike Haskew

The 16th President of the United States, Abraham Lincoln was elected to the highest office in the land in November 1860, and the event prompted the secession of numerous southern states beginning with South Carolina the following month. Read more

Civil War

The CSS Alabama’s Place in Naval History

By Roy Morris, Jr.

The CSS Alabama went to her watery grave on June 19, 1864, off the coast of France, but the lingering effects of her wartime successes made naval history: she continued to haunt the American and British governments for years to come, embroiling the two English-speaking nations in a legal test of wills that would last well into the next decade. Read more

Civil War

Union Generals of the American Civil War: George McClellan

by Mike Haskew

General George McClellan was a key figure in the prosecution of the American Civil War, particularly during 1862, when he led the Union Army of the Potomac during the Peninsula Campaign, a failed offensive to capture the Confederate capital of Richmond in the spring, and the Battle of Antietam, the bloodiest single day in American history, on September 17, 1862. Read more

Civil War

Photographing the Battle of Antietam

By Roy Morris, Jr.

Two days after the unparalleled bloodletting at Antietam, a bushy-bearded Scottish photographer and his pudgy, clean-shaven assistant rolled onto the battlefield with their bulky stereoscopic cameras and portable darkroom. Read more

Civil War

Going Up Against J.E.B. Stuart

Brigadier General Alfred Pleasonton’s outward appearance was that of a well-groomed man. He kept his beard and moustache neatly trimmed, parted his wavy hair on the side, and wore a wide-brimmed hat like a dandy. Read more

Civil War

Confederate Cavalry Leader Turner Ashby

Even in an army not lacking for larger-than-life figures, Confederate cavalry leader Turner Ashby stood out from the crowd. Although not particularly tall—about five feet, 10 inches—there was something about Ashby that commanded attention. Read more

Panic-stricken Union troops stumble down the steep eastern slope of Ball’s Bluff and plunge into the surging Potomac River at the climax of the battle. There were too few boats to evacuate the wounded—much less the fleeing.

Civil War

Long Shadows at Ball’s Bluff

By Cowan Brew

For all his great political skills, Abraham Lincoln was a man who made few close personal friends. He was both too private and too ambitious to court a large number of intimate acquaintances. Read more

Civil War

The Common Soldier in the Post-Civil War Era

As author Lee Chambers’s new book on Fort Abraham Lincoln (reviewed in this issue) illustrates, the reading public, both in the United States and abroad, remains fascinated by life in the West following the Civil War. Read more

Civil War

Gettysburg

Don Williams’ story on the Devil’s Den allows me an opening to write about the Battle of Gettysburg. To the myriad words on the conflict, I add the following. Read more

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