The Front Line
Our communal blog featuring the latest in Civil War news, research, analysis, and events from a network of historians
Published: 4/22/24
War Poems of “Howard Glyndon”
In 1864, 25-year-old Maryland native Laura Catherine Redden published her first book of poetry, Idyls of Battle, and Poems of the Rebellion. Redden, who had lost her hearing at age...
Published: 4/8/24
Extra Voices: Losing Comrades
In the Voices section of our Winter 2023 issue we highlighted quotes by Union and Confederate soldiers about the loss of a comrade. Unfortunately, we didn’t have room to include all that we found. Below are those that just missed the cut.
Published: 2/16/24
Jefferson Davis’ Inaugural Address
At 1 p.m. on February 18, 1861, Jefferson Davis was inaugurated as president of the Confederate States of America at Montgomery, Alabama. Davis, 52, who had served as U.S. secretary...
Published: 1/8/24
Extra Voices: Doldrums of War
In the Voices section of our Fall 2023 issue we highlighted quotes by Union and Confederate soldiers about the long stretches of inactivity and boredom they regularly faced. Unfortunately, we didn’t have room to include all that we found. Below are those that just missed the cut.
Published: 12/11/23
The Best Civil War Books of 2023
The Books & Authors section of our Winter 2023 issue contains our annual roundup of the year’s best Civil War titles. As usual, we’ve enlisted a handful of Civil War...
Published: 10/30/23
The Books That Built Me: John Hennessy
The contruction of my historiographical self began on a rainy afternoon in fifth grade. There was no chance for outdoor romping, or venturing through the deluge to a friend’s house...
Published: 10/6/23
Lincoln Prize Lecture 2023
On October 26, 2023, The American Civil War Museum (ACWM), in partnership with the Gilder Lehrman Institute for American History, will host its first annual Lincoln Prize Lecture, where guests will...
Published: 9/25/23
Voices From the Army of Northern Virginia, Part 8
DeGolyer Library, Southern Methodist University Soldiers of the Texas Brigade Putting this series together has been enjoyable but also frustrating. None of the retrospective literature created by soldiers in the...