Tag Archives: JoAnna M. McDonald

Civil War Adventures with Mom

Posted on March 28, 2020 by JoAnna McDonald

When the call went out for blog posts on “a woman who’s had an important impact on you and your development as a Civil War historian,” I jumped at the chance. The answer is easy: my mom, Barbara. My mom … Continue reading →

Posted in Personalities | Tagged , , | 3 Comments

ECW Welcomes JoAnna M. McDonald

Posted on March 10, 2020 by Emerging Civil War

Meet the newest ECW member! JoAnna M. McDonald, Ph.D., is a historian, writer, and public speaker. She grew up a stone’s throw from the U.S. Army War College in Carlisle, Pennsylvania and was blessed with two mentors associated with this … Continue reading →

Posted in Emerging Civil War | Tagged , | 1 Comment

The Civil War Versions of “NUTS”!

Posted on December 26, 2019 by JoAnna McDonald

Welcome back, JoAnna M. McDonald History does not quite repeat itself in the literal sense, but it does rhyme.   For example, cheeky responses to surrender demands are apparently a tradition in American military history (and in military history in general).  … Continue reading →

Posted in Battles, Common Soldier, Primary Sources | Tagged , , , , | 1 Comment

The Political Strategy Behind Thanksgiving 

Posted on November 28, 2019 by JoAnna McDonald

ECW welcomes back JoAnna M. McDonald Whether you commend or condemn the actions of President Abraham Lincoln, he was an astute strategist.  He took every opportunity to achieve a political advantage over the Confederacy. This detail can be seen even … Continue reading →

Posted in Holidays, Lincoln, Politics | Tagged , , , , , | 1 Comment

Lincoln Develops a More Modern Command System – Part 2: Frustration to Breakthrough

Posted on October 3, 2019 by JoAnna McDonald

Emerging Civil War welcomes back JoAnna M. McDonald (This piece follows the introductory reminder of wars and republics and Part 1: Growing Pains) Thus far, in the first fourteen months, President Abraham Lincoln’s command systems had failed to generate success … Continue reading →

Posted in Armies, Lincoln, Politics | Tagged , , , , , , | 4 Comments

Lincoln Develops a More Modern Command System, Part 1: Growing Pains

Posted on October 2, 2019 by JoAnna McDonald

Emerging Civil War welcomes back JoAnna M. McDonald (This piece follows the introductory reminder of wars and republics.) When you think of the Northern effort in winning the war, you probably picture Congress passing legislation that generated huge numbers of … Continue reading →

Posted in Armies, Lincoln, Politics | Tagged , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Winning Wars in a Republic

Posted on October 1, 2019 by JoAnna McDonald

Emerging Civil War welcomes back JoAnna M. McDonald, and this short post “sets the stage” for a full discussion in the following days about Lincoln and his challenges with a republic at war. While the North and South had different … Continue reading →

Posted in Politics | Tagged , , | 10 Comments

Let Us Reason Together

Posted on August 6, 2019 by JoAnna McDonald

ECW welcomes back JoAnna M. McDonald Several weeks ago, Chris Mackowski asked if I would be interested in contributing to the Emerging Civil War blog, and, if so, what type of articles would I offer. As a student of the … Continue reading →

Posted in Leadership--Confederate, Leadership--Federal, Memory | Tagged , , | 3 Comments