Turning the Tables at Laurel Hill
By Scott Valentine First Lt. and Acting Adjutant Orett Lyman Munger and his comrades in the 44th New York Infantry rushed to capture, along with the rest of 5th Corps,
Category: Vignette
A Plucky Mortar Boat Crew at Plum Point Bend
By Scott Valentine Ever since the Army of the Mississippi had been diverted to Maj. Gen. Henry W. Halleck’s campaign against Corinth, Miss., the Union’s Western Gunboat Flotilla had been
In the Bowels of Hell at Antietam
By Scott Valentine When William Estes Hacker regained consciousness after a bullet knocked him off his feet at Antietam, he became aware of the appalling human carnage around him. The
Sabers at Shepherdstown
By Scott Valentine Seeking to relieve pressure on the Army of Northern Virginia besieged at Richmond and Petersburg in the summer of 1864, Gen. Robert E. Lee ordered a diversion
Wounded at Fort Wagner, Death after Bermuda Hundred
About half an hour after the 54th Massachusetts Infantry and the rest of Brig. Gen. George Strong’s Brigade charged Fort Wagner, another Union brigade joined the offense. Commanded by Col.
The Strange Cask of Captain Leeds
Francis Randolph Leeds enjoyed a sterling reputation as a cashier at the Stamford Bank in Connecticut. Popular with customers and others in town, the 27-year old applied to raise a
“The Little Doctor” With a Big Reputation
By Scott Valentine The fighting at Bull Run, the Civil War’s first major battle, seemed touch and go for a while. In the end, the Rebels controlled the field and
“The Rash Act”
By Scott Valentine Occasionally, the ordeal of war is too much to bear. Such was the case for Cpl. Thomas Sturges Thorp, Jr., of the 23rd New York National Guard.
My Darling Clementine
By Scott Valentine The 1864 Battle of the Monocacy determined the fate of a back door to Washington, D.C. If Lt. Gen. Jubal Early’s Confederates broke through it, the path
The Water Tiger vs. the Long Board With a Hogshead
By Scott Valentine Corporal William Charles Henry Reeder sent dozens of letters to his parents about his Civil War experience. A keen observer, Reeder and his comrades in the 20th