
Soldiers


Published: 4/7/25
Killed at Shiloh
Read a moving letter to the parents of a Union soldier killed at Shiloh that the "Dead-letter Office" tried to see delivered properly.
Published: 3/18/25
Please Write!
First-person quotes from Union and Confederate soldiers about their deep desire to receive letters from home.
Published: 3/18/25
A Boy Soldier
The story of 15-year-old Jimmy Bateman's relentless pursuit to join the Union army in 1861.
Published: 3/10/25
A Lesser-Known Gettysburg Hero
Colonel Joshua L. Chamberlain of the 20th Maine Infantry earned the Medal of Honor for his actions at the Battle of Gettysburg. So too did his regiment's color sergeant, Andrew Jackson Tozier.
Published: 1/13/25
Extra Voices: Narrow Escapes
Read first-hand quotes by Union and Confederate soldiers about the close calls they and their comrades had in combat during the Civil War.
Published: 1/2/25
Narrow Escapes
A sampling of first-person quotes by Union and Confederate soldiers about the close calls they had in combat.
Published: 1/1/25
An Eventful New Year
Explore a letter from a Union officer that documents an Emancipation Day celebration in New Bern, North Carolina, on New Year's Day, 1865.
Published: 12/16/24
How a Man Feels in Battle
How did men experience combat during the Civil War? A Union veteran of the Battle of Bull Run offers his thoughts.
Published: 12/9/24
At Fredericksburg
A poignant poem from Harper's Weekly tells the story of two Union comrades facing the horrors of the Battle of Fredericksburg.
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Published: 11/25/24
Civil War Punishments
Discover the various methods used to discipline soldiers during the Civil War.
Published: 10/28/24
Death of a Loyal Brother
Read the poignant letters of a Byron B. Wilson, a Union soldier in the 4th Vermont Infantry, to his sister during the Civil War.
Published: 10/20/24
Eyewitness to Ball’s Bluff
Discover first-hand accounts of the Battle of Ball's Bluff through the letters of Richard C. Derby, a Union soldier in the 15th Massachusetts Infantry.
Published: 10/2/24
A Package from Home
A captivating photograph of Union officers opening a package from home.
Published: 10/2/24
Accidental Deaths
A sampling of first-person quotes about accidental deaths during the Civil War.
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Published: 10/2/24
The Zouave
By 1861, Elmer Ellsworth had become a household name in much of America. Read how he and his Chicago Zouaves earned national fame.
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Published: 10/2/24
The Bloodiest Day
D. Scott Hartwig looks at how rank-and-file Union and Confederate troops experienced the Battle of Antietam.
Published: 10/2/24
A Burdensome Decision
A look at the difficult decision Colonel Lewis Johnson of the 44th U.S. Colored Troops faced at Dalton, Georgia.
Published: 9/30/24
A Spy’s Demise
In 1865, the United States Sanitary Commission, a private relief agency that supported sick and wounded soldiers during the Civil War, published a volume of Union soldiers’ writings titled Soldiers’...