Category Archives: Civil War

The Lost Cause

Posted on May 2, 2013 at 5:15 pm by JM Ashby

Media Matters brings us up to speed on the incoming president of the National Rifle Association. Jim Porter is just as awful as you would expect a president of the NRA to be, but this in particular stood out to … Continue reading →
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Posted in Civil War, Gun Fetishists | Tagged , , , | 20 Comments

On This Day in History, Something Truly Great Happened

Posted on September 22, 2012 at 6:27 pm by Bob Cesca

Seriously. On Sept. 22, 1862 — 150 years ago today — Abraham Lincoln announced the Emancipation Proclamation, promising to free the slaves in any state still in rebellion on Jan. 1, 1863. Americans have celebrated Lincoln’s proclamation, and argued about … Continue reading →

Posted in Civil War | Tagged , , , , , | 13 Comments

The Doctor Who Saved Lincoln. Briefly.

Posted on June 7, 2012 at 7:15 am by Bob Cesca

They’ve discovered the first draft of a medical report written by the doctor who first treated President Lincoln immediately after he was shot in the head. And it’s typically frustrating to read, given the archaic medicine at the time. SPRINGFIELD, … Continue reading →

Posted in Civil War | Tagged , , | 4 Comments

How Many Men Died in the Civil War?

Posted on April 3, 2012 at 3:03 pm by Bob Cesca

For decades, it’s been generally accepted that around 620,000 men were killed during the American Civil War. Astonishing — more men died during that war that all other American wars combined. Old tactics mixed with new ballistics technology made for … Continue reading →

Posted in Civil War | Tagged , , | 4 Comments

Last Surviving Witness to Lincoln's Assassination

Posted on March 30, 2012 at 11:11 am by Bob Cesca

Via Cliff Schecter, here’s a clip from the 1956 game show “I’ve Got A Secret” featuring the last surviving witness to Lincoln’s assassination.

Posted in Civil War | Tagged , , | 6 Comments

Slave Tells Former Master to Suck It

Posted on February 2, 2012 at 12:49 pm by Bob Cesca

This is fascinating. Historians discovered this 1864 letter from a former slave to his former master. Dayton, Ohio, August 7, 1865 To My Old Master, Colonel P.H. Anderson, Big Spring, Tennessee Sir: I got your letter, and was glad to … Continue reading →

Posted in Civil War | Tagged , , , | 10 Comments

African-Americans and Studying the Civil War

Posted on December 8, 2011 at 9:34 am by Bob Cesca

Ta-Nehisi Coates wrote a phenomenal piece in The Atlantic’s Civil War commemorative issue, and he laments that so few blacks are students of the Civil War, noting that it was “their” war. And for black people, there is this—the burden … Continue reading →

Posted in Civil War | Tagged , , , , , | 7 Comments

Shocker: Bill O'Reilly's Lincoln Book is Crap

Posted on November 12, 2011 at 2:07 pm by Bob Cesca

O’Reilly wrote a book about the Lincoln assassination, and it’s loaded with name and detail errors. Historian Edward Steers points out the most fictitious section: The authors write that she was forced to wear a padded hood when not on … Continue reading →

Posted in Civil War | Tagged , , , , | 10 Comments

The Death Toll from Secession

Posted on September 28, 2011 at 4:30 pm by Bob Cesca

The Civil War continues to be the most deadly American war, but the approximately 600,000 deaths could actually be an undercount. The New York Times’ Disunion blog: New estimates, based on Census data, indicate that the death toll was approximately … Continue reading →

Posted in Civil War | Tagged , , , | 12 Comments

Some Historians Don't Get the Civil War

Posted on July 12, 2011 at 1:04 pm by Bob Cesca

The latest issue of Smithsonian magazine features a brief history of the First Battle of Bull Run (First Manassas for our southern friends) to commemorate the 150th anniversary of the battle on July 21. In the “From the Editor” column, … Continue reading →

Posted in Civil War | Tagged , | 8 Comments