Category Archives: Politics

A Whiff of Treason? John Hay, George B. McClellan, and the Incident with Major John J. Key

Posted on January 10, 2022 by ECW Guest Post

ECW welcomes guest author Alexander B. Rossino A scandalous incident occurred in Washington, D.C. soon after the end of the 1862 Maryland Campaign. In late September, Maj. John J. Key, an officer attached to the staff of general-in-chief Henry Halleck, … Continue reading →

Posted in Leadership--Federal, Personalities, Politics | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | 15 Comments

“The Daylight of Deliverance” – Nathaniel Lyon Responds to the 1860 Election Results

Posted on November 29, 2021 by Kristen M. Trout

Two months after the death of Brigadier General Nathaniel Lyon at Wilson’s Creek, The Last Political Writings of Gen. Nathaniel Lyon was published. Utilizing many of Lyon’s political articles and letters he wrote while in Kansas to The Manhattan Express, this remarkable source … Continue reading →

Posted in Leadership--Federal, Personalities, Politics, Primary Sources | Tagged , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

The Trent Affair’s Diplomatic Winners and Losers

Posted on November 8, 2021 by Neil P. Chatelain

November and December 2021 mark the 160th anniversary of the Trent affair. Centered around Confederate diplomatic legitimacy, it caused controversy and embarrassment for the United States, the Confederacy, and United Kingdom, with some surprising winners and losers. In the fall … Continue reading →

Posted in Leadership--Confederate, Leadership--Federal, Navies, Politics | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | 11 Comments

A Close Brush With History—UWF History Trust’s Black Politicians Exhibit

Posted on October 14, 2021 by Sheritta Bitikofer

It was recently announced in the last Emerging Civil War newsletter that I’ve taken on a part-time position with the University of West Florida’s Historic Trust in Pensacola, Florida. I had begun volunteering in their Collections Department – and diversifying … Continue reading →

Posted in Material Culture, Memory, Politics, Preservation, Reconstruction, Ties to the War | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Stephen A. Swails: Black Freedom Fighter in the Civil War and Reconstruction

Posted on October 10, 2021 by Chris Mackowski

One of the things I love most about the Civil War community is that books are such a major part of our overall culture. I love a good book, and love the fact that so many people around me love … Continue reading →

Posted in Books & Authors, Politics, Reconstruction, USCT | Tagged , , , , , , , | 4 Comments

Sherman in the Days Before Disunion

Posted on September 15, 2021 by Derek Maxfield

As the dark clouds of war gathered in early 1860, William Tecumseh Sherman’s career took yet another turn. He was called by old army friends like Braxton Bragg and P.G.T. Beauregard to become superintendent of the Louisiana Seminary of Learning … Continue reading →

Posted in Personalities, Politics, Primary Sources, Slavery | Tagged , , , , , , | 6 Comments

The Legacy of John A. Logan

Posted on July 13, 2021 by Emerging Civil War

by Hannah Roesch Tucked behind a white picket fence in the heart of Murphysboro, Illinois, sits a museum dedicated to one of the most colorful generals of the Civil War, John A. Logan. Since 1989 The General John A. Logan … Continue reading →

Posted in Holidays, Personalities, Politics, Reconstruction | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , | 7 Comments

BookChat with Richard Miller, author of John P. Slough

Posted on June 2, 2021 by Chris Mackowski

I was pleased to spend some time recently with a new biography by Richard Miller, John P. Slough: The Forgotten Civil War General, published by the University of New Mexico Press (find out more about it here). Miller is the … Continue reading →

Posted in Book Review, Personalities, Politics, Reconstruction | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , | 7 Comments

Echoes of Reconstruction: Roundup of Recent Books

Posted on May 31, 2021 by Emerging Civil War

ECW is pleased to welcome back Patrick Young, author of The Reconstruction Era blog Many of us expanded our reading during the lonely days of the Pandemic by taking old books off the shelves to read anew. I just settled in with … Continue reading →

Posted in Book Review, Memory, Politics, Reconstruction | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 7 Comments

A Radical Gettysburg Address

Posted on May 18, 2021 by David T. Dixon

President Abraham Lincoln’s two-minute remarks during the dedication of the Soldiers’ Cemetery at Gettysburg on November 19, 1863 may be the most heralded words ever delivered in the English language. For nearly 160 years, the legacy and mythology surrounding that … Continue reading →

Posted in Leadership--Federal, Lincoln, Politics, Slavery | Tagged , , , , , | 7 Comments