The Civil War Podcast

Some idiot “historian” has been making waves on the Internet this week, claiming he uncovered a patent Lincoln made for a paper version of Facebook.  Naturally, I clicked with interest, but knew at first sight it was a hoax.  No pictures were printable in 1843, and the reference to Lincoln “sons” when only Robert was [...]

The University of Richmond has posted an interactive, online map that charts the activity of the Union army and (sometimes unrelated) slavery/emancipation events across the states from ’61 to ’65.  It’s interesting to note how the red dots (emancipations) generally precede the blue dots (army investments), and to observe the profusion of red and blue [...]

As if the Lincoln Library needs more adversity in this troubled sesquicentennial, it seems one of their centerpieces is of questionable provenance.  Such a sham(e). The Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library and Museum in Springfield has long proclaimed that an 1850s-era stovepipe hat in the museum’s possession belonged to Lincoln. But this month, after Dave McKinney [...]

I ragged on the trip planner from the National Parks Service Civil War website, but the rest of the site is fantastic.  I’ve always found the NPS site-sites lacking in information.  If you want two paragraphs on why they’re important, OK, but God forbid they should have photos of what to see while you’re there. [...]

The US Postal Service has created some 1862 sesquicentennial stamps.  They aren’t much more visually interesting than the aforementioned coins, though I admit, I haven’t seen the size of the stamps.  Super-huge stamps would give a bit more oomph than the watercolored drabness of the Antietam scene, and the New Orleans battle is a bit [...]

After 150 years, historians are taking a second look at the estimated death count of the war.  A new thesis, based upon census data, suggests a significant boost in the numbers. The true death toll was probably about 750,000 – 20 percent higher than the traditionally quoted figure of 620,000 – and might have been [...]

NPR puts a name to an unknown soldier. This is a fascinating piece of modern detective work. Now that we had the regiment, the next step was to visit the New York soldiers index, where a search in the National Parks Service Soldier and Sailors Database turned up four possibilities with the right initials: Thomas [...]

The Lincoln Museum in Springfield is deep in debt and feuding internally. A shame that this is happening during the sesquicentennial celebrations.  Here’s hoping they can get their act together and their debt paid off, and get on with being an informative and entertaining center of history. Just seven years old, the Abraham Lincoln Presidential [...]

The National Park System has created a new Civil War portal, with a map tool that allows you to create a route for sesquicentennial holidaying.  It seems promising, but in my opinion needs some refinement.  Independent sites are available, but major and minor sites are given equal stature, so it’s difficult to zoom in on, [...]

Today is the anniversary of Lincoln’s death, the process of which started the night before at Ford’s Theater, and ended across the street at the Petersen House. This year, both events and locations have been commemorated in a newly expanded museum housed in the building adjoining the House Where Lincoln Died. Wait a minute, you [...]