The Guns of Fort Fisher
As noon approached on January 15, 1865, the officers and crew of the Powhatan unleashed the fire of 15 guns against Fort Fisher, adding their thunder to the great naval
Category: Most Hallowed Ground
An Incident Along the Road to Warrenton
Troopers of the 10th New York Cavalry spent October 13, 1863, in the saddle, moving through hostile Virginia. Repeated calls to form for battle proved false alarms. Near 9 p.m.
Wounded at Gettysburg, Vilified for a Political Scandal
In every battle he fought, William Wade Dudley “distinguished himself as a good soldier, which is the highest possible recommendation that can be given any man,” according to an 1881
“He Would Carry an Order Into Hell If I Should Tell Him to Take One There”
At Cold Harbor, while fighting raged across the battle-scarred landscape, Maj. Gen. Winfield Scott Hancock observed the action from a prominent knoll. As couriers and aides from the brigades and
A Habit of Disappearing—and Reappearing
Franklin Young Commagere had a habit of disappearing. At age 17 in 1861, Ohio-born Frank gained acceptance to the U.S. Naval Academy, a sociable young man full of fun and
“Woe Be to Those Who Laugh at His Death”
War Department clerk and former army captain Edward C. Townsend was overcome with emotion after news of the assassination of Abraham Lincoln reached him. “Never before did I shed tears
Respected From East to West and Everywhere In Between
In July 1861, a U.S. Army first lieutenant made his way from Fort Randall in Dakota Territory to the East for new duties. Edmund Cooper Bainbridge, 26, had a wealth
A Modest Iron Man
A writer visiting Arlington National Cemetery in the late 19th century noted Civil War veterans paying tribute at the memorial to Maj. Gen. James Brewerton Ricketts. “No more daring or
“The Soul of Grant’s Cabinet is Gone”
General and Secretary of War John Aaron Rawlins lost his battle against consumption late in the afternoon of Sept. 6, 1869. His death struggle played out in a bed at
The Celebrated Man of the Hour
Bad news flooded Northern newspapers in 1861. Secession. Fort Sumter. Riots in Baltimore and St. Louis. Lost battles at Bull Run and Ball’s Bluff. Death snuffing out young lives. News