Confederacy

For Union soldiers, a cup of coffee made hardtack biscuits more palatable. 

How Coffee Helped the Union Caffeinate Their Way to Victory in the Civil War

The North’s fruitful partnership with Liberian farmers fueled a steady supply of an essential beverage

A Juneteenth celebration held in Brooklyn, New York, on June 18, 2023

Why Juneteenth, the U.S.'s Second Independence Day, Is a Federal Holiday

The celebration commemorates June 19, 1865, when a military decree informed the people of Texas that all enslaved people were free

In 1866, Joseph A. Joel, a Jewish private in the 23rd Ohio Volunteer Infantry Regiment, wrote a detailed account of an 1862 Passover Seder.

How Jewish Soldiers Celebrated Passover in the Midst of the Civil War

A group of Union men from Ohio held a makeshift Seder in the western Virginia woods in 1862

Tobias Menzies (right) as Secretary of War Edwin Stanton in "Manhunt"

The Real History Behind Apple TV+'s 'Manhunt' and the Search for Abraham Lincoln's Killer

A new series dramatizes Edwin Stanton's hunt for John Wilkes Booth and his co-conspirators in the aftermath of the president’s 1865 assassination

Lincoln Cemetery was established in 1867, two years after the Civil War ended.

Near the Site of the Gettysburg Address, These Black Civil War Veterans Remain Segregated, Even in Death

Denied burial alongside Union soldiers killed during the Battle of Gettysburg, the 30 or so men were instead buried in the all-Black Lincoln Cemetery

A white Baptist woman named Harriet M. Buss taught Civil War hero Robert Smalls (pictured) how to read and write.

What a Teacher's Letters Reveal About Robert Smalls, Who Stole a Confederate Ship to Secure His Freedom From Slavery

Harriet M. Buss' missives home detail the future congressman's candid views on race and the complicity of Confederate women

Safety fencing at Arlington National Cemetery rings the Confederate memorial.

Federal Judge Allows Removal of Confederate Memorial at Arlington National Cemetery

The Defense Department had mandated that the monument be dismantled by January 1, 2024

At the beginning of the Civil War, Ulysses S. Grant wasn’t an abolitionist, admitting that his beliefs were “not even what could be called antislavery.” By August 1863, he had changed his mind, writing, “Slavery is already dead and cannot be resurrected.”

Unraveling Ulysses S. Grant's Complex Relationship With Slavery

The Union general directly benefited from the brutal institution before and during the Civil War

Crews used armor-plated excavators while working on the riverbed in case they came across unexploded ordnances.

Civil War Weapons Recovered From South Carolina's Congaree River

Union troops tossed Confederate munitions and supplies into the waterway after taking Columbia in February 1865

Foundry workers disassembled Charlottesville's Robert E. Lee statue before melting it down.

Foundry Workers Melt Down Charlottesville's Divisive Robert E. Lee Statue

Eventually, an artist will be chosen to transform the bronze bars into a public art installation

“Had it not been for the testament given [to] him by Mr. Foster, which received a second bullet, I doubt if you would have ever seen him again,” wrote journalist Benjamin Perley Poore in a letter to Merrill's father.

The Bible That Stopped a Bullet

In 1863, a New Testament tucked in the pocket of Union soldier Charles W. Merrill prevented a musket ball from mortally wounding him

The four colorful panels depict Black Americans holding protest signs.

See Washington National Cathedral's New Racial Justice-Themed Stained-Glass Windows

Designed by artist Kerry James Marshall, the panels replace windows depicting Confederate Generals Robert E. Lee and Stonewall Jackson

Excavations near the Powder Magazine in Williamsburg, Virginia, where the four bodies were found

Four Bodies Found in Colonial Williamsburg Belonged to Confederate Soldiers

Researchers are trying to identify the men who died after the Battle of Williamsburg in 1862

The 700-plus gold coins, found in a cornfield in Kentucky, date to between 1840 and 1863.

Trove of 700 Civil War-Era Gold Coins Discovered in Kentucky

An unidentified man found the cache, which may have been buried ahead of a Confederate invasion, in a cornfield earlier this year

On a June morning in 1864, Meade expelled Edward Crapsey from camp, ordering his men to seat the reporter backward on a mule, with a sign around his neck that read “Libeler of the Press.”

After Winning the Battle of Gettysburg, George Meade Fought With—and Lost to—the Press

The Civil War general's reputation was shaped by partisan politics, editorial whims and his own personal failings

The crew of the USS Kearsarge, photographed shortly after battle with the CSS Alabama

Was This Civil War Hero the First Medal of Honor Recipient Born in Africa?

Recent research suggests Joachim Pease, a sailor recognized for his role in sinking a Confederate raider, was from Cape Verde

Sergeant Henry Johnson (standing, holding bouquet of flowers) and the Harlem Hellfighters at a 1918 victory parade in New York City

Louisiana Army Base Formerly Named for Confederate General Now Honors Black WWI Hero

Sergeant Henry Johnson received a posthumous Medal of Honor recognizing his bravery in battle in France

Descendants of Confederate General Robert E. Lee and descendants of slaves owned by Lee face Washington, DC, as they pose for a photo during a reunion at Lee's former plantation home, the Arlington House, at Arlington National Cemetery in Arlington, Virginia, on April 22, 2023.

The Descendants of Robert E. Lee and the Workers He Enslaved Join Hands in Racial Reconciliation

The Confederate general's Virginia home hosted families from all across the United States.

A hand-colored 1892 print of the Battle of Fort Pillow

At Fort Pillow, Confederates Massacred Black Soldiers After They Surrendered

Targeted even when unarmed, around 70 percent of the Black Union troops who fought in the 1864 battle died as a result of the clash

The seven-inch artillery shell found at Gettysburg National Military Park

160-Year-Old Civil War Artillery Shell Found at Gettysburg

After clearing the area, park officials sent experts to safely detonate the object

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