2018 ECW Early Bird Symposium Admission
Subscribe BY RSS
Author Archives: Dave Powell
A Confederate at Antietam
You never know what you will find in an archival collection. Back in June, I spent a day at Emory University, digging through their vast Civil War holdings, much of which were collected by the late (and great) Bell I. … Continue reading
Posted in Battles, Common Soldier, Emerging Civil War, Primary Sources
Tagged Antietam, Army of Northern Virginia, battle, soldier letters
8 Comments
Major Tom Taylor at Ezra Church
On July 28, 1864, the Union Army of the Tennessee reached a point west of Atlanta from where they could threaten the Macon Railroad, which entered Atlanta from the southwest. In an effort to thwart that move, Confederate General John … Continue reading
East Tennessee and Confederate Copper
On November 25, 1863, Colonel Eli Long rode into Cleveland, Tennessee, at the head of 1,500 Union cavalrymen. They were there to wreak general havoc. When it comes to Civil War cavalry raids, Long’s Cleveland incursion does not garner much … Continue reading
Posted in Cavalry, Economics, Material Culture, Weapons, Western Theater
Tagged Chattanooga Campaign, Cleveland Tennessee, Raids, railroads, War Material
6 Comments
The Other Rock of Chickamauga?
One of the joys of research is turning an unexpected corner to find out something new. That happens every so often, and when it does, I always get a little buzz of excitement. Most recently, that buzz came when I … Continue reading
We Happy Few…
Here’s a little curtain-raiser for Battle Above the Clouds. In September 1863, United States Secretary of War Edwin M. Stanton initiated one of the more remarkable troop movements of the American Civil War. Stanton, alarmed by the recent Union defeat at … Continue reading
A Tale of Two Monuments
This small stone marker sits at the foot of a low ridge just outside of the very sleepy burg of Resaca, in north Georgia. In mid-may, 1864, Resaca was little more than a railroad stop and a fortified camp to … Continue reading
Posted in Battlefields & Historic Places, Battles, Emerging Civil War, Memory, Monuments
Tagged Atlanta Campaign, Cleveland, Memory, monuments, Resaca
5 Comments
Political Discourse, 1880s style:
A friend sent me this, which was published in the Robinson (IL) Argus, July 15, 1880: Ed Harlan, in his speech here at the Hancock (Wm [sic] Scott) ratification meeting made the statement that Gen. Garfield played the part of … Continue reading
Posted in Battlefields & Historic Places, Battles, Emerging Civil War, Leadership--Federal, Memory, Politics
Tagged Chickamauga
3 Comments
Longstreet Goes West: Conclusions
James Longstreet’s time in the Western Theater has by and large, not garnered accolades. The prevailing western-centric view casts him as a haughty eastern interloper, come to further his own ambitions at Bragg’s expense. Historians of a more eastern bent … Continue reading
Posted in Emerging Civil War
Tagged Bragg, Chickamauga, civil war memory, historiography, Leadership, Longstreet, Longstreet-Goes-West, monuments
3 Comments
Chickamauga and Resaca in March 2017
Dear readers, Some of you may know that every year I organize a two-day tour in March, to Chickamauga. This year, the dates are March 10-11, 2017. We will be exploring the new Georgia Park at Resaca, and then spending … Continue reading
Posted in Emerging Civil War
Tagged battlefields, Chickamauga, National Park Service, Resaca
1 Comment
Longstreet Goes West, part nine: The November of our discontent
Part Nine in a Series Both Bragg and Longstreet – indeed every Confederate from Richmond on down – understood that to be successful, any movement into East Tennessee must be conducted quickly, and in sufficient strength. The idea was to … Continue reading
Posted in Emerging Civil War
Tagged Bragg, Chickamauga, civil war memory, historiography, Leadership, Longstreet, Longstreet-Goes-West, monuments
3 Comments
