Civil War History Education/Learning Links
(revised 7-15-2021)
The Civil War Round Table of the District of
Columbia (with the help of its member Steve Jaren) has created this post with a
list of a variety of Civil War history-related lectures and other online
resources. Most of the links listed below are free or may require registration
before accessing. If a site has a cost associated with viewing its contents
(which are only a few), then that information is noted below.
Many of the sites are secure and their
website URL address will start with “https.” An unsecured site’s URL
address will start with only “http” (i.e., without the "s" at the end
of "http"). Before clicking on one of these sites, please make sure
your personal device/computer has the appropriate software to protect against
any potential malicious malware.
The list is also not
exhaustive. If you have any questions or suggestions on additional
sites that our membership will find of interest, please contact Steve Jaren at
steven.jaren@gmail.com.
INDEX (Click on a topic below to navigate to that topic)
Not yet activated
- Civil War Round Tables and Related Organizations
- Academia - Colleges and
Universities
- Research Sites and Databases
- Official Government Documents and Other Publications
- Lectures and Presentations Available Online
- Focus on Battles and Battlefields
- CW Military Specialties
- African-Americans in the CW
- Women in the CW
- Focus on Abraham Lincoln
- Focus on Ulysses S. Grant
- CW Photography
- Washington DC during the CW
- Selected CW-Related Museums
- Miscellaneous Resources
CIVIL WAR ROUND TABLES and related organizations
1. The Civil War Round Table of the District of
Columbia:
The Civil War Round Table of the District of Columbia (CWRTDC) was established in 1951 with Bruce Catton and Virgil Carrington "Pat" Jones among its founding members. Its purpose is to stimulate and expand interest in the military, political, diplomatic, economic, and socio-cultural history of the United States and particularly the Civil War. It is also committed to preserving historical sites and landmarks through initiatives such as, among others, its annual Edwin C. Bearss Award. Among its achievements, the Round Table spawned the National Civil War Centennial Commission.
For more information about the CWRTDC, visit www.cwrtdc.org
Click on a speaker or topic posted on CWRTDC's audio/video recording site hosted by SoundCloud and YouTube. It now has over 80 lectures and associated PowerPoint Slide decks posted, and no registration is required.
https://cwrtdc-audio.blogspot.com/
The
Round Table also maintains a Facebook page.
https://www.facebook.com/cwrtdc/
In addition, the Round Table publishes newsletters. For more information, visit https://cwrtdc-newsletters.blogspot.com/p/archive.html
2. Bull Run Civil War Round Table (BRCWRT):
The BRCWRT audio podcasts are similar to the CWRTDC's audio
recordings. Click on the left-hand side “Podcasts of Presentations”
tab to access their audio podcasts.
3. Montgomery County Civil War Round
Table (MCCWRT):
For information on their list of speakers and topics please visit their website at http://www.mccivilwar.org/ and download their newsletter. Please email Paul Weller at pweller@agriwashington.org to obtain information regarding the Zoom link, and time of the virtual presentation.
4. The Civil War Round Table of Chicago:
The Civil War Round Table of Chicago web site contains You
Tube links to prior meeting presentations, copies of their monthly newsletter,
in addition to links to other Civil War related resources.
5. The Cleveland, OH Civil War Roundtable:
The Cleveland CWRT newsletter contains a large number of Civil War articles. In addition, the web site has under its “Category” listing a number of other articles.
https://www.clevelandcivilwarroundtable.com/
6. Links to other CWRTs:
The CWRT Congress provides links
to 259 CWRTs, with most of those organizations providing a web site or/and a
Facebook page.
http://www.cwrtcongress.org/CWRT-registry/social-media.php
BACK TO INDEX
Academia
- COLLEGES AND UNIVERSITIES
1. Gettysburg College Civil War Institute:
Under the Gettysburg College Civil War
Institute Home Page you will find on the left-hand side a Digital Projects tab
that has two links. One is called, “The Gettysburg Compiler,”
which is written and edited by students and staff of the Civil War Institute of
Gettysburg College. Established in 2012,
it serves as a virtual bridge between its students and the
public. The other is called, “Killed at Gettysburg,” which is
a new digital history project. Researched and written by Gettysburg
College students and partners, the site tells the stories of the men who gave
the last full measure of devotion at the Battle of Gettysburg.
https://www.gettysburg.edu/civil-war-institute/index.dot
2. Virginia
Tech (Blacksburg, VA) Virginia Center for Civil War Studies:
This web site contains a tab
entitled, “Programs and Projects,” where you can find a mix of faculty
and student projects in video and other media formats.
3. University of Virginia (Charlottesville, VA) John
L. Nau Center for Civil War History:
This site maintains a Blog site. At this site you can find Civil
War articles.
http://naucenter.as.virginia.edu/blog-articles
4. McCormick Civil War Institute at Shenandoah University (Winchester, VA):
The
McCormick Civil War Institute at Shenandoah University has available for
viewing blog posts under the MCWI News tab.
5. The University of North Carolina (Chapel Hill, NC):
A digital publishing initiative sponsored by the University
Library at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, provides access to
digitized primary materials that offer Southern perspectives on American
history and culture.
https://docsouth.unc.edu/docsouthdata/
The Civil War Day-by-Day:
Drawing on the vast holdings of the Louis Round Wilson Special
Collections Library, the site presents samples of the Civil War’s
documentary remains. The site states, “The concept of Civil War Day by Day is a
simple one: every day for the four years of the Civil War presenting a document
that is 150 years old to the day. This project, Civil War Day by Day
contains images of more than 1458 primary source documents. Contributions from
Documenting the American South, the North Carolina Collection, the Rare Book
Collection, the Southern Folklife Collection, the Southern Historical
Collection, and University Archives will include newspapers, pamphlets, books,
broadsides, legislation, photographs, sheet music, letters, diaries, order
books, and telegrams. The Civil War Day by Day is neither an exhaustive,
nor even a representative presentation of the UNC holdings. Rather, it is
suggestive, presenting readers with small stories and isolated declarations. It
is also a largely unmediated presentation.”
https://blogs.lib.unc.edu/civilwar
6. The University of North
Carolina, Chapel Hill, NC - The Southern Homefront, 1861-1865:
The Southern Homefront, 1861-1865, presents documents related to
all aspects of Southern life during the Civil War. In particular, government
and civilian publications demonstrate the Confederate States of America's
unsuccessful attempt to create a viable nation state. This collection includes
over four hundred Civil War era maps, broadsides, photographs, printed works,
Confederate currency, and manuscript letters and diaries.
https://docsouth.unc.edu/imls/
7. Shepard University (Shepherdstown, WVA) - George Tyler
Moore Center for the Study of the Civil War:
The George Tyler Moore Center for the Study of the Civil
War at Shepherd University is engaged in a long-term project to establish a
Civil War soldier database with initial emphasis on West Virginia soldiers, the
Center has a magnificent Civil War library and sponsors lectures by leading
authorities on antebellum and Civil War history, summer seminars, and
battlefield tours. These can be accessed
at their YouTube site.
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCB_xyHtmeVWnPbCNo9d60XA
RESEARCH SITES AND DATABASES
1. The U.S. Army Center for Military History:
The Center of Military History (CMH) is responsible for the appropriate use of history throughout the United States Army. The web site contains a tab entitled, “Civil War Research and Commemoration”, which can be accessed by clicking on the below link.
https://history.army.mil/html/bookshelves/resmat/civil_war/index.html
2. The Scottsdale, AZ Civil War Roundtable - 100 Civil War Sites that Military Personnel Should Bookmark:
The Scottsdale, AZ Civil War Roundtable provides a link entitled, “100 Civil War History Sites that Military Personnel Should Bookmark”, which has links to the following categories: Civil War Blogs, State Civil War Resources, Sesquicentennial Commemorations, More About Civil War History, Local Civil War Round Tables, Battles, and Museums.
https://militaryonlinecolleges.org/civil-war-history#blogs
3. Pamplin Historical Park, Petersburg, Virginia – Digital Archives:
The Pamplin Historical Park and The National Museum of the Civil War Soldier has launched new digital. This searchable database gives scholars and history lovers an opportunity to view documents from the 18th to 20th Centuries. The core of the archives is the famed Wiley Sword Collection, which ranges from personal letters to general orders. Wiley Sword was the author of several Civil War histories and awarded the Fletcher Pratt Prize for the best book of Civil War history. Sword had spent his lifetime building this collection for use in his own research and writing. Digital copies of these invaluable resources are now available to the public for use and research.
Included in the Pamplin Historical Park archives is the Gladstone Collection, and over 3,000 periodicals and titles in the Civil War Research Library. A rare assortment of mail envelopes and postage related archives comprise the Park's Gladstone Collection. The new digital archives can be accessed through the Pamplin Historical Park's homepage under the "About The Park" drop down menu tab before clicking on "Pamplin Digital Archives." Three categories consist of Antebellum, Civil War and Postbellum archives. Antebellum includes documents dating to before the Civil War, such as civilian, Seminole Wars, and the Mexican-American War. The Civil War category consists of personal letters of soldiers and civilians, general orders, staff endorsements. Postbellum documents include memoirs of soldiers and survivors, letters from their descendants, and recollections of Reconstruction.
4. National Archives Civil War Search:
The site offers a wide variety of Civil War. The site also includes an hour YouTube presentation by the CWRTDC's member Fergus Bordewich on his latest book, “Congress at War.”
https://search.archives.gov/search?query=civil+war&submit=&utf8=&affiliate=national-archives
5. American Civil War Research Database:
The American Civil War Research Database was created, using information from each soldier's military and civilian experiences to build a database from "ground up" rather than "top down". Historical Data Systems has created the only database of its kind that can be used for statistical and analytical examinations of the War. It is now possible to examine and measure the impact these individual soldier experiences had upon regimental effectiveness. There is an annual fee of $25 to access the database. The American Civil War Research Database is a relational database. There are numerous files (i.e., roster records, pension index records, GAR records, etc.). With HDS' Database the "relationship" or connection between these multiple files is the soldier's name. The primary source of information comes from the State Rosters as published by the Adjutants' General of each state. In addition the site has begun to enter information for Roll of Honor soldiers, soldiers awarded the Medal of Honor, soldiers or family members who filed for pensions (pension record index information), 1860 census town summary information, 1890 enumeration of Civil War veterans or widows, and regimental histories. There are records for more than 4 1/4 million soldiers.
6. Library of Congress Civil War Search:
The site makes available a wide variety of Civil War media.
https://www.loc.gov/search?new=true&q=civil+war
7. CivilWar.Com:
CivilWar.com is a commercial website that states the site is owned by Premier Internet, Inc. The owners have always held a fascination with the American Civil War and wanted to create a virtual monument to the Civil War. You will also see advertising throughout CivilWar.com. Over 80 category links can be found under the Resources/ Links tab.
http://www.civilwar.com/overview.html
8. Civil War Profiles:
The intent of Civil War Profiles is to tell the stories of those who served. It is a blog focused on the individuals and the actions they performed relevant to the Civil War. From the information found on the website the site is the work of internal medicine Dr. Mathew W. Lively. The site contains posts, along with a large number of Civil War resources.
https://www.civilwarprofiles.com/resources/
9. The Civil War Index:
The site states that the website is meant to be an index of other sources about the Armies, Soldiers, and Battles of the Civil War. They offer links to the Official Records, free online books, books that may be purchased, and other websites. The Armies list the various Regiments, as created in the various states. It also lists the Armies as they are created throughout the War. The Soldiers list both Officers and Enlisted Men and whatever information can be found. The Battles list the various Events as listed in the Official Records, with links to correspondence and other information concerning each event.
https://civilwarindex.com/index.html
10. Ann Arbor, MI Civil War Round Table:
This CWRT site lists a number of Civil War Resources. On the main page you will find a tab on the left-hand side entitled "CW Resources." When you click on this tab, a page will open "CW Resources," where you will find “…an eclectic list of links to Civil War sites.” The categories are: Information Archives; Sites related to battles; Blogs (including Dave Powell's on Chickamauga, and Brooks Simpson's); Sites related to People (Civil War-related People); Genealogical site; Miscellaneous sites (a single link entitled, “Music and poetry”); Slavery and Emancipation sites; and Discussion Groups/Online Journal.
11. National Park Service (NPS) Civil War Soldiers & Sailors System
This NPS web site contains the service records of Civil War Soldiers and Sailors from both sides. The Civil War Soldiers and Sailors System contains just an index of the men who served in the Civil War with only rudimentary information from the service records (including name, rank and unit in which they served). The full-service records are housed at the National Archives and Records Administration. Information about obtaining copies of those records, using the film number listed in the Civil War Soldiers and Sailors System record is provided at this site. Additionally, all records in this database have been transcribed from the National Archives' original documents; alternate names and/or misspellings are recorded as initially documented.
www.nps.gov/civilwar/search-soldiers.htm
12. Gilder Lehrman Collection:
The Gilder Lehrman Collection contains more
than seventy-five thousand items documenting the political, social, and
economic history of the United States covering five hundred years of American
history, from Columbus’s 1493 letter describing the New World to soldiers’
letters from World War II and Vietnam.
These materials range from iconic historical treasures, such as the
Declaration of Independence, the U.S. Constitution, and the Emancipation
Proclamation, to personal letters that tell the stories of citizen-soldiers and
their families. The collection includes
items associated with the Civil War and with Slavery. The main strengths of this collection lie in
the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, particularly in the study of slavery
and abolition.
Under the “Programs & Events” tab you
will find a link entitled, “Collection Programs”. When you click on that link and scroll down
to the bottom of the page click on the tab “View Full Archive of Past
Sessions”. You will find 23 archived
virtual presentations that cover the full range of American history
(presentations dating from April 3, 2020 to February 18, 2021), with several
dealing with the American Civil War, Reconstruction, and Slavery. The below link will take you directly to that
page.
https://www.gilderlehrman.org/collection/inside-vault-archive
13. Irish in the Civil War:
The below web site provides information about Irish involvement in
the Civil War, to include podcasts.
https://irishamericancivilwar.com/
14. Virginia Piedmont Heritage Area (formerly Mosby Heritage Area Association) Remote Learning Resources:
The Virginia Piedmont Heritage Area provides a variety of Remote Learning resources. This content is available free of charge to anyone interested in learning about local history.
https://www.piedmontheritage.org/
BACK TO TOP
OFFICIAL GOVERNMENT DOCUMENTS AND PUBLICATIONS
1. Joint Committee on the Conduct of the War:
As the American Civil War progressed, Congress formed a Joint Committee of on the Conduct of the War to investigate various aspects of the war. The first report was published in 1863, followed by additional reports in 1864 and 1866, and a supplemental report in 1866, which included testimonies from prominent Union generals. The digitized version of these reports found at the below link is provided at the HathiTrust web site. HathiTrust is a not-for-profit collaborative of academic and research libraries preserving 17+ million digitized items. These documents are facsimile copies of the original reports.
https://catalog.hathitrust.org/Record/000452116
2. Cornell University Library, NY - The War of the Rebellion: Compilation of the Official Records of the Union and Confederate Armies:
The Cornell University Library Making of America Collection is a digital library of primary sources in American social history from the antebellum period through reconstruction, to include “The War of the Rebellion: a Compilation of the Official Records of the Union and Confederate Armies.” In addition, the Library also has available the official naval records for both sides that can be accessed at the below hyperlink site.
https://collections.library.cornell.edu/moa_new/waro.html
Official Records of the Union and Confederate Navies.
https://collections.library.cornell.edu/moa_new/ofre.html
The atlas that accompanies these records can be found at the below Library of Congress hyperlink. The LOC also has available digital copies of both the Armies and Navies records in their original form.
https://www.loc.gov/resource/g3701sm.gcw0099000/?st=gallery
3. Battles & Leaders of the Civil War – The Ohio State University:
The Ohio State University has digitized the "The Century War series,, Battles & Leaders of the Civil War publications. This digitized version was published from November 1884 to November 1887 in the Century magazine.
https://ehistory.osu.edu/books/battles
In addition, the Ohio State University also has digitized The War of the Rebellion: a Compilation of the Official Records of the Union and Confederate Armies records and the atlas that accompanies these records.
https://ehistory.osu.edu/books/official-records
4. Military Order of the Loyal Legion of the United States:
The Military Order of the Loyal Legion of the United States (MOLLUS) was founded by Federal Officers of the Civil War the day President Abraham Lincoln died on April 15, 1865. This website contains a listing of nearly 12,000 Original Companions who served as officers during the Civil War or continued in the military service after the War, eventually becoming commissioned officers.
Please see our MOLLUS Home Page and the MOLLUS Web Site Index Page for additional history of the Order. The lists provide the name of the Companion, his military rank, regiment, and branch of service. There are some Companions of the "3rd Class" or what is today referred to as "Honorary" Companions who did not serve in the military or qualify for membership but who did significantly contribute to the war effort or contributed to the well-being of the Republic and personified in their own lives the principles of the Order.
http://suvcw.org/mollus/orgmem/Index.htm
5. Private Voices - University of Georgia ehistory.org (Dr. Stephen Berry) website:
Private Voices is the offspring of the Corpus of American Civil War Letters (CACWL) project. Michael Ellis of Missouri State University and Michael Montgomery of the University of South Carolina began the project in 2007 with the aim of seeking and transcribing letters written during the Civil War to gather evidence of regional American English in the 19th century. As of May 2018, the project has amassed more than ten thousand letters and diaries written during the conflict by common soldiers and their families from all parts of the country.
Private Voices was launched in July 2017 with transcriptions of nearly 4,000 letters from four Southern states: North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia, and Alabama. It now enters its second phase with an additional 2,000 letters from four Northern states: Ohio, Pennsylvania, Massachusetts, and Maine. Preparations are underway to add letters from other Northern and Southern states, as well as additional letters from the eight states they have already introduced.
Besides the letter transcriptions, the site has created two sections dealing specifically with language: “Camp Talk,” which features specialized glossaries of terms gleaned from the letters and “Word Maps,” which features dozens of maps that locate geographically some of the most regionally distinctive words and linguistic features found in the letters. The site also has a search feature which enables the user to search words in context. Users can also check out the website’s “Writers and Collections” section to browse letters, letter writers, and archival collections.
BACK TO INDEX
LECTURES AND PRESENTATIONS ONLINE
1. The Civil War Round Table of the District of
Columbia Past Speaker presentations:
Click on a speaker or topic posted on CWRTDC's audio.video recording
site hosted by SoundCloud and YouTube.
It now has about 80 lectures and associated PowerPoint Slide decks
posted, and there is no registration required.
https://cwrtdc-audio.blogspot.com/
2. Bull Run Civil War Round Table (BRCWRT) Audio
Podcasts:
The BRCWRT audio podcasts are similar to the CWRTDC's audio
recordings. After clicking on the below link, you will have a
number of audio podcasts to choose from, along with posted PowerPoint Slide
decks. No registration required.
http://bullruncwrt.org/BRCWRT/AudioArchives/Audio_menu.html
3. CWRT Congress Lecture Series:
Mike Movius, from the CWRT Congress, provides ongoing CWRT Congress lectures via Zoom. The lectures are on Wednesdays, at 7 pm
Eastern time. You need to register for
each individual lecture. Donations are appreciated. To register for a
virtual seat, click the below link.
https://www.cwrtcongress.org/speaker.html
The CWRT Congress continues to offer, “Fridays
with U. S. Grant”. They start at 7
pm Eastern time, with Dr. Curt Fields talking about the life experiences of
Ulysses S. Grant in the first person to the CWRT Congress audience. Dr. Fields is the preeminent Grant living
historian. Registration is free.
https://www.cwrtcongress.org/grant.html
The CWRT Congress has also loaded video lectures to its YouTube
site. Mike requests when you go to
the below YouTube site that click the bell icon located in the upper right-hand
corner of the site which will notify you of future videos added to the site.
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCopQK7so7ZVnNGzibM_qVYA?view_as=subscriber
4. Blue and Gray Education Society (BGES):
The site has posted various Civil War blogs.
https://www.blueandgrayeducation.org/blog/
BGES also has available
under their Video Archives past tours and presentations. Access videos is only available to BGES
members, which involves a cost to join BGES. Information on the membership prices can be
found at the BGES web site. They have an
archive of more than one thousand hours of video divided between lectures and
field tours over a 26-year period. The lectures span some 14 years from 1994
through 2008. They exceed 300 in volume, totaling about 400 hours. The video offering can be accessed at the
BGES website http://www.blueandgrayeducation.org. Scroll down beneath “Our Charitable Works” to
“Video Archives” and click on “Read More.”
To access the videos as a BGES member you will need to register and
receive a computer-generated password (which you will be able to change). The
parameters will be set so that each registration will be approved by the
BGES. In approving your access, BGES
will enter your renewal date. That date will be the firewall to admitting you
to the site to view videos.
5. Emerging Civil War Podcasts:
The Emerging Civil War site contains various
Civil War-related posts, in addition to Podcasts that are available by
subscription. Taken from their web page, and slightly edited, these
Podcasts provide a fresh perspectives and great insights on America’s defining
event from the historians at Emerging Civil War. They are co-hosted
by Chris Mackowski and a revolving cadre of ECW’s contributors. The
Emerging Civil War Podcast taps into an award-winning line-up of historians
from a wide variety of backgrounds and with expertise in many Civil War-related
topics. Listen to the Emerging Civil War Podcast and be part of the
conversation, which you can also join online at
Emerging Civil War also offers their exclusive Podcast through
"Patreon." You can subscribe to receive the Podcasts at
the current patron supporter levels, fees, and benefits of: (a) Enlisted –
$1.99 per month, receive access to a new Podcast every month; and, (b)
Non-Commissioned Officer – $3.99 per month, receive access to two new Podcasts
every month.
https://emergingcivilwar.com/the-emerging-civil-war-podcast/
ECW's Virtual Symposia
These talks are available on the ECW web
page, along with recorded symposiums going back to 2014:
https://emergingcivilwar.com/2021-symposium/past-symposiums/
6. The Tattooed Historian, John Heckman:
The Tattooed
Historian, John Heckman, has posted a number of Civil War related talks with
historians, academics, and subject of his own interest on Facebook, YouTube,
and as Apple Podcasts. He states on his
Facebook site, “Tired of being lectured when it comes to history? Then you've come to the right place! Here is where history is for everyone,
regardless of your background or education level. History, which is accessible, edgy, and
fun!” Here are the links.
Facebook -
https://www.facebook.com/thetattooedhistorian/videos/?ref=page_internal
YouTube -
https://www.youtube.com/c/TheTattooedHistorian/featured
Apple
Podcasts -
https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-tattooed-historian-show/id1448205370
7. Chambersburg Civil War Seminars & Tours:
The
Chambersburg Civil War Seminars & Tours has begun bi-monthly virtual
lecture series. These bi-monthly virtual
lecture series are presented via Zoom. Talks are hosted on the 15th and 30th of
every month starting at 7 pm. There is a cost of $5 associated per
session. Upon registering and payment
you will receive the Zoom login information.
https://www.civilwarseminars.org/lectures
8. Gettysburg College
Civil War Institute:
CWI is offering special
programming through Zoom (videos are available on YouTube). C-SPAN programming featuring CWI Director
Peter Carmichael is also available for viewing at any time.
https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLLUHqKmasrS3q2DvbVP2HBauOrp9PuR_g
The CWI Robert Fortenbaugh Memorial Lecture is presented each year
on November 19, the anniversary of the Gettysburg Address, and takes as its
central goal speaking to the literate general public without abandoning solid
scholarly moorings. Many, but not all,
of these lectures have been recorded and can be viewed at the below
hyperlink. Some of the past lectures available for viewing include George
Rable, David Blight, and Michael Burlingame.
https://www.gettysburg.edu/civil-war-institute/events/fortenbaugh-lecture/past-fortenbaugh-speakers
9. HistoryAuthorTalks.com:
Past speaker
presentations are listed in chronological order.
https://www.historyauthortalks.com/
10. D. Scott Hartwig, retired Gettysburg National Park Supervisory
Historian:
Scott Hartwig maintains a web page where you can find Scott
Hartwig articles and video presentations. In particular, the below
hyperlink contains an approximate 70-minute presentation that Scott made
September 19, 2014 at the U.S. Army Heritage and Education Center, entitled,
“To Antietam Creek: The Maryland Campaign.” The below link first takes
you to Scott’s Home Page. At that page click on the tab “Links &
Resources”. You will find this YouTube presentation in the lower
right-hand corner of this page in addition to other Scott Hartwig
presentations.
http://dscotthartwig.com/links--resources.html
11. C-SPAN3 American History Channel TV:
This site offers a number of video presentations, such as one by
the CWRTDC's current President Jon Willen talking about Dr. Charles Peale, who
treated the mortally wounded President Lincoln, and another on Fort Stevens, in
which Loretta Neumann is featured in one of the presenters.
https://www.c-span.org/series/?theCivilWar
And don't forget that the 1994 debates of our February 2020 Speaker George Buss
are posted at the CWRT DC Past Speaker site:
https://cwrtdc-audio.blogspot.com/p/buss-audio.html ; or
at https://www.c-span.org/series/?LincolnDouglas
12. Savas
Beatie Publishing:
Savas Beatie
is a California-based book publishing company established in 2004. They have
published many Civil War books dealing with a wide range of topics, in addition
to publishing books on a variety of other historically related subjects and
time periods. On their home website they
maintain a calendar at the bottom of the web page entitled, “Events for
Website”, which contains a number of virtual presentation links by authors.
13. Virginia Tech Virginia Center for Civil War Studies:
This web site contains a tab entitled, “Events,” where you
can find under the “Previous Events”
tab you will find previously presented virtual lectures.
14. The American Civil War Museum, Richmond, VA Videos:
In 2013, The American Civil War Museum was formed by the merger of
the American Civil War Center and the Museum of the Confederacy in Richmond,
VA. Under its “Learn” tab a link can be found entitled, Videos,
contains a number of videos, such as one entitled, What Caused the
Civil War, presented by Ed Ayers.
https://acwm.org/blog/category/video/
In addition, the museum maintains a YouTube site where video
presentations can be found.
15. The National Civil War Museum, Harrisburg, PA:
This site has a number of videos.
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UChzZS4t8cZN2L2qPEIzBdwA/featured
BACK
TO INDEX
FOCUS ON BATTLES AND BATTLEFIELDS
1. American Battlefield Trust:
Taken from their web page, and slightly edited, the American Battlefield Trust video collection includes hundreds of videos covering a wide range of topics.
https://www.battlefields.org/learn/videos
In addition, the American Battlefield Trust site, under its “Learn” tab, contains other resources.
https://www.battlefields.org/learn
For the 157th anniversary of the battle of Gettysburg the Battlefield Trust presented live videos from July 1 to July 3, 2020. Those videos have been saved to their YouTube site and can be viewed at the following link.
https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLZrhqv_T1O1sMKD-07FCZM_Bp3OHb9--R
You can also subscribe to the Trust’s Twitter account which sends out daily twitters (Monday through Friday). You can find the Trust’s Twitter account at the following link.
https://twitter.com/battlefields
2. The Civil War Round Table of Greater Boston, MA – Civil War Battlefields:
This site contains a link in which you can take virtual tours of different civil war battlefields. The site was last updated July 7, 2002. The site states for the virtual tours, “Welcome to the Virtual Tours Section of Civil War Battlefields Online…In addition to the virtual tours, each page contains detailed information on the battle and reviews and statistics for the battlefield.”
https://cwbattlefields.com/virtualtours.html
3. National Park Service (NPS):
This NPS site provides links to various NPS sources, such as individual NPS managed battlefield sites, in addition to other Civil War resources.
https://www.nps.gov/civilwar/index.htm
3. Gettysburg Foundation Virtual Gettysburg:
This site contains resources that includes the ability to get a 360-degree virtual view of the Gettysburg Cyclorama, complete with notes and highlights. The site states that it's the next best thing to actually visiting the historic painting.
https://www.gettysburgfoundation.org/virtual-gettysburg
5. Civil War Defenses of Washington (CWDW):
Battle of Fort Stevens Commemoration consisted of digital programs featured on the Civil War Defenses of Washington (CWDW) Facebook page. Prior programs are available for viewing.
https://www.facebook.com/cwdwnps/
6. Monocacy National Battlefield Foundation Audio Tours:
The Monocacy National Battlefield has created audio presentations providing details of the Battle and other interesting facts related to the auto stops in the Park. The audio files are in a MP3 format.
http://www.monocacynbfoundation.com/
7. Antietam on the Web:
The site states that this website focus is on the people who participated in the battle of Antietam (or Sharpsburg). In addition to thousands of individual soldier profiles, the site has several ways to look at the battle and the campaign of September 1862: with interactive maps, narratives from the official to the personal, and special projects highlighting aspects of the history.
8. The Civil War Battle Series at the Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library – Dr. Mark DePue:
The below YouTube hyperlink contains eight videos presented by Dr. DePue on different Civil War battles at the Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library. Each presentation is over an hour in length. The presentations are undated but they appear to have been made four to six years ago.
https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=the+civil+war+battle+series
9. Central Virginia Battlefields Trust (CVBT):
CVBT is a non-profit organization dedicated to the preservation of endangered, historic battlefields in Fredericksburg, Chancellorsville, the Wilderness, and Spotsylvania Court House areas of Virginia in which they have helped preserve over 1,350 acres of historic battlefield terrain. Their web site contains a number of informational documents associated with the civil war battlefields in central Virginia.
10. Brandy Station Foundation (the Battle of Brandy Station):
The Battle of Brandy Station was one of history's greatest cavalry engagements with over 20,000 troops, including 17,000 cavalry, engaged in battle. The Graffiti House served as a field hospital for the South during this and other local battles during the war. It also served as a headquarters facility for the Federal forces during the winter encampment of 1863-64. Soldiers from both sides made drawings and signed their names and units on the walls. The web site contains information not only about this battle, but also information about the Graffiti House, including information on a tour of other places in northern Virginia that also contain Civil War graffiti.
http://www.brandystationfoundation.com/
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CW MILITARY SPECIALTIES
1. The Naval History and Heritage
Command (NHHC):
The U.S. Navy maintains a web site that contains Civil War naval
documentation. Explore these resources to learn more about the
significance of the Navy during the Civil War, read first-hand accounts of the
conflict, and analyze technological developments of the time
https://www.history.navy.mil/browse-by-topic/wars-conflicts-and-operations/civil-war.html
2. Confederate States Navy and Marines:
The site is the work of the CS Navy Research Center based in
Mobile, AL. The site states that the specialty of the organization is to
collect and catalog copies and originals of anything and everything, no matter
how small and trivial, involving the Confederate States Navy and Marines and to
make its site a one-stop information center.
3. The Mariner’s Museum (Newport News, VA):
The Mariner’s Museum maintains a Civil War Blog which can be found
at the following link.
https://blog.marinersmuseum.org/civil-war/
In addition, John V. Quarstein, Director emeritus, USS Monitor Center,
continues his lecture series on Naval aspects of the Civil War. You need to reserve a place in advance for these
presentations at the following link.
https://www.marinersmuseum.org/live/
John’s past presentations can be found at the
Mariner’s YouTube site.
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCcSc8VWgsIr2ChdXad3t-DQ/videos
1. Signal Corps
Association 1860-1865:
The site contains links to the following topics: 1) Aeronautics,
2) Signal Services, 3) Genealogy, 4) Cryptography, 5) Spies, Scouts, &
Raiders, 6) Young Signalists, 7) Signal Forum, and 8) Telegraph Service
http://www.civilwarsignals.org/
2. The Society of Civil War Surgeons:
The society was formed in 1980 by six Civil War medical
reenactors. They have over 400 members. The site contains a number of
links you may find of interest.
https://civilwarsurgeons.org/related-links#cw-history
3. National Museum of Civil War Medicine (Frederick, MD):
The website states that its online resources are designed to help
educators and students discover and share the history of Civil War medicine.
https://www.civilwarmed.org/online-resources/
In particular, please review its recording linked below with the
Jon Willen, the President of the Civil War Round Table of the District of
Columbia, NMCWM Executive Director David Price, and NMCWM Director of
Interpretation Jake Wynn.
4. Confederate Railroads:
This site is the work of Mr. David L. Bright. On his home
page he states he presents the details behind the railroads. Here you will find each railroad, its location
and length, its type and size of rail, the number of cars and locomotives it
had when the war started, and the names and technical data of each locomotive.
He has also provided lists of stations on each road and comments about most
Confederate cities, taken from a Confederate railroad guide. He has also posted well over 19,600
transcriptions of the railroad issues-related documents. He is also looking
for photographs of Confederate locomotives that he can post.
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AFRICAN-AMERICANS IN THE CW
1. Freedmen and Southern Society
Project – Univ. of Maryland, College Park, Maryland:
Dr. Leslie S. Rowland spoke at our Round Table on May 14, 2019
regarding exciting new documents associated with the African American military
experience uncovered as part of her research as the Director of the Freedmen
and Southern Society Project. Earlier
documents (letters, affidavits, and memorials) -- drawn from the records of the
National Archives -- revealed the variety and complexity of the
African-American experience during the era of emancipation, which were
published as part of her book, Freedom's Soldiers; The Black Military
Experience in the Civil War (Cambridge University Press, 1998). The
Freedom Project is publishing a projected nine-volume series of books entitled
“Freedom: A Documentary History of Emancipation, 1861-1867.” It is funded by
grants from the National Endowment for the Humanities and the National
Historical Publications and Records Commission.
The below link provides sample documents from the published volumes
similar to what Dr. Rowland discussed. Like all the documents in
Freedom, they are transcriptions (or, in some cases, images) of originals
housed in the National Archives of the United States.
http://www.freedmen.umd.edu/index.html
2. Michigan State Univ. - Enslaved – Peoples of the Historical Slave Trade:
Launched in
December 2020, Enslaved – Peoples of the Historical Slave Trade is a
project of Matrix: The Center for Digital Humanities & Social Sciences at
Michigan State University (MSU), in partnership with the MSU Department of
History, University of Maryland, and scholars at these institutions. Enslaved.org’s primary focus is
people—individuals who were enslaved, owned slaves, or participated in slave
trading. Users may search numerous
datasets and reconstruct the lives of people involved in the historical slave
trade. You may browse interconnected
data, generate visualizations, and explore short biographies of enslaved and
freed peoples. Discover and explore
nearly a half million people records and 5 million data points. From archival
fragments and spreadsheet entries, see the lives of the enslaved in richer
detail. The site welcomes the help of
scholars, educators, and family historians to expand the site.
3. African American Civil War Memorial Museum,
Washington, DC Posts:
The African American Civil War Memorial Freedom Foundation was
incorporated in 1992 to tell the largely unknown story of the United States
Colored Troops (USCT). One of the web site’s features is a Blog
where various posts can be found.
https://afroamcivilwar.tumblr.com/
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WOMEN IN THE CW
1.
The Society for Women and the Civil War:
The
Society for Women and the Civil War web site is dedicated to
recognizing the efforts of women who lived through or participated in the
American Civil War and those who research, reenact or otherwise honor these
women of the past. The society sponsors an
annual conference and a quarterly e-journal. Under the “more” tab you can find
educational materials and copies of past newsletters through calendar year
2019.
2. Duke University, NC - The Civil War: Women
and the Homefront:
Numerous
resources on the topic of women and the Civil War are available at the Duke
University Rubenstein Library. This guide is a starting point for doing
research on the topic. The site entitled, “Primary Sources Online” is a section
that includes digitized material from Duke Libraries and other sources, primary
source databases, and microfilm collections.
https://guides.library.duke.edu/civilwarwomen
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FOCUS ON ABRAHAM LINCOLN
1. The Lincoln Group of the District of Columbia (LGDC)
The Lincoln Group of the District of Columbia is an active institution dedicated to a better understanding our 16th President. Programs and events are designed to promote study of the life and leadership of Abraham Lincoln.
For information about its events and programs, visit https://www.lincolnian.org/
2. The Surratt Society
The Surratt Society is a volunteer organization dedicated to the preservation and interpretation of history involving the Surratt House. Founded in 1975, the Surratt Society encourages research into the role that this historic site played in the events surrounding the assassination of Abraham Lincoln, and into life in mid-19th century Southern Maryland. As part of their education effort, they publish the Surratt Courier on a bi-monthly newsletter basis. It includes articles related to the Lincoln assassination, the Civil War, and Victorian times, many of which, are contributed by scholars and authors who are Society members. The calendar year 2020 and 2021 and available digitally.
https://www.surrattmuseum.org/surratt-courier
For past articles prior to 2020 The Surratt Couriers have been compiled into a comprehensive index. To view the Surratt Courier Index, click on the below link. For any inquiries about past articles please contact the James O. Hall Research Center.
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FOCUS ON ULYSSES S. GRANT
1. The Grant Monument Association:
The Grant Monument Association website has a tab entitled, “Other Sites Related to Grant”. The online links that can be found under this tab are both Grant-specific and other topics of interest.
https://grantstomb.org/homepage/other-sites-related-to-grant/
2. Library of Congress - Ulysses S. Grant Papers Collection
The Library of Congress has digitized the papers of Ulysses S. Grant (1822-1885), army officer and eighteenth president of the United States. The digital archive contains approximately 50,000 items dating from 1819-1974, with the bulk falling in the period 1843-1885. They include general and family correspondence, speeches, writings, reports, messages, military records, financial and legal records, newspaper clippings, scrapbooks, memorabilia, and other papers throughout his entire life. The collection also includes the manuscript draft of his Personal Memoirs of U. S. Grant, correspondence and memoirs of his wife Julia Dent Grant (1826-1902), and a galley proof of the biography Ulysses S. Grant: Warrior and Statesman (1969) by his grandson Ulysses S. Grant III.
https://www.loc.gov/collections/ulysses-s-grant-papers/about-this-collection/
3. U.S. Grant Presidential Library, Mississippi State University:
This site has a collection of Grant papers and related items that are maintained at the Mississippi State University.
http://www.usgrantlibrary.org/collections/
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CW PHOTOGRAPHY
1. The Center for Civil War Photography:
This web site contains not only still Civil War photographs but
videos discussing Civil War photography. These can be found under the
site’s “Resources” tab. The last link under this tab is entitled, “Online
Exhibits”. The other links that can be found here also contain some
wonderful resources.
https://www.civilwarphotography.org/index.php/videos/
2. Mathew Brady:
The U.S. National Archives has digitized over 6,000 images from
the series Mathew Brady Photographs of Civil War-Era Personalities and Scenes
(National Archives’ Local Identifier 111-B) and includes them in its online
catalog. They plan to upload all of the
ones available in the online catalog to Flickr gradually over a few months.
https://www.flickr.com/photos/usnationalarchives/collections/72157622495226723/
3. BGES Medford Photograph
Series:
In the late 19th
century, General Samuel C. Lawrence collected photographic images. It was his passion, and whenever copies were
presented or opportunities existed to grow his collection, he collected—nearly
3,700 images. Most are familiar to
us—Lawrence did not acquire images shot entirely or exclusively for him. Lawrence was able to identify some and marked
them accordingly. Some no doubt were
misidentified, while others were unknown to him. In partnership with the Medford Historical
Society and Museum, BGES is compiling and evaluating the answers and forwarding
credible information to the Medford Historical Society to make the collection
more functional for users.
4.
Virginia Tech - Civil War Photo Sleuth
The VCCWS supports the Civil War Photo Sleuth,
using crowdsourcing and facial recognition technologies to identify soldiers,
sailors, and civilians.
https://www.civilwarphotosleuth.com/
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WASHINGTON DC DURING THE CW
1. The White House Historical Association
The Association maintains Civil War-related information in two
locations. They have a YouTube site that provides video presentations for
some of their past speakers. As part of their “History Happy Hour -
Rushmore Series”, they recently posted Ron White’s presentation of, “Lincoln's
Greatest Speech”, which is a discussion of the second inaugural
speech. In addition, you can find a presentation entitled, “Slavery at
the White House: Five Untold Stories”, under the site’s “Videos” tab.
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCvXtfQvIqLGa3nsFCZ0MdOA
The Association has other Civil War resource material at the
following link.
https://www.whitehousehistory.org/search?q=Civil+War
2. National Park
Service (NPS) Civil War Defenses of Washington:
The Civil War Defenses of Washington were a group of
Union Army forts (68) and artillery batteries (93) that protected Washington,
D.C. from invasion by the Confederates during the Civil War. The NPS currently manages 19 forts and
artillery battery sites. Information
regarding these defenses can be found at the below NPS web site.
https://www.nps.gov/cwdw/learn/photosmultimedia/multimedia.htm
The National Park Service has developed an extensive (it
is 21 pages in length when saved as a Word file) Civil War Defenses of Washington resource
guide entitled, National Park Service Civil War Defenses of
Washington Historic Resources Study.
This guide can be accessed at the following hyperlink. https://www.nps.gov/parkhistory/online_books/civilwar/hrs1-b.htm
2.
Civil War Washington – University of Nebraska-Lincoln:
Civil War Washington examines the U.S. national capital from
multiple perspectives as a case study of social, political, cultural, and
medical/scientific transitions provoked or accelerated by the Civil War. The
project draws on the methods of many fields—literary studies, history,
geography, computer-aided mapping—to create a digital resource that chronicles
the war's impact on the city. It draws on material ranging from census
records to literary texts and from forgotten individuals to the famous (such as
Abraham Lincoln and Walt Whitman).
Its website features essays, conference papers, grant narratives, and
other materials about Civil War Washington as a project.
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SELECTED CW-RELATED MUSEUMS
TO BE ANNOUNCED
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1. Smithsonian National Museum of American History Blog Posts in “Civil War 150”
The museum has fifty-eight different blog posts on various Civil War-related stories. https://americanhistory.si.edu/blog?term_node_tid_depth=113
2. YouTube American Civil War Search:
This site contains a list of numerous Civil War sites. Please note that not all sites are secure.
https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=american+civil+war
3. Facebook American Civil War Search:
This site contains a list of numerous Civil War sites. The Facebook site states in the upper left-hand corner “Not Secure” if the site is not secure.
https://www.facebook.com/search/top/?q=the%20american%20civil%20war&epa=SERP_TAB
4. CivilWarTalk.com:
Mike Kendra is the Managing Member of CivilWarTalk.com. He established the site in April 1999, with the intent to bring experts and amateurs who share the desire to learn more about the Civil War together, and to take that shared knowledge and make it available to anyone and everyone on the internet. Mr. Kendra states on his web site that the purpose of CivilWarTalk.com is: 1) to be a friendly community, a proverbial "Cyber-campfire" for all who wish to post their thoughts or questions, and for all those who wish to listen; and, 2) act as a powerful research tool, with a wide array of resources.
5. Clara Barton Missing Soldiers Office Museum:
The Clara Barton Missing Soldiers Office is one of the National Museum of Civil War Medicine’s three sites. Located on 7th Street, NW, Washington, DC, the third floor contains the restored rooms and items related to when Clara Barton lived at this location during and immediately after the Civil War. By the time the office closed in 1868, she and her staff had identified the fate of over 22,000 men. The museum contains her original tin advertisement signs, handwritten letters, and a Civil War-era map of forts and hospitals in Washington D.C. The website contains a tab entitled, “learning.” When you click on that tab you will find additional resources, including a “Blog” link.
https://www.clarabartonmuseum.org/blog/
6. Gettysburg College Civil War Institute Blog posts:
The Gettysburg College Civil War Institute maintains a Facebook site that contains media posts.
https://www.facebook.com/pg/CivilWarInstitute/posts/?ref=page_internal
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