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Time for another tale of Private Sam Watkins of the First Tennessee Infantry.It was 1863. Sam was in Chattanooga, preparing for the arrival of Grant’s army. That included fortifying Lookout Mountain (see photo above). Sam tells us:“About this time my father paid me a visit. Rations were mighty scarce. I was mighty glad to see […]

Last month we posted a spine-tingling and amazing story about the Ghosts of Gettysburg that just might make believers out of anyone.  If you missed it, check it out here: Since then, we’ve collected a few other first hand, up close and personal stories from some of you out there. We’d like to share a few

Through the harsh winter of 1865, General Lee’s Army of Northern Virginia suffered a steady stream of  desertions. At its worst, hundreds of men chose to put the war behind them. Execution waited for those caught in the act, but Lee’s greatest hope was to slow it down at best, and even try to stop

Private Sam Watkins’ Company H of the 1st Tennessee was camped on the Duck River, at a moment when there were no battles to win. The thing is, a soldier needs stuff to do or he gets bored and up to trouble. As the  Bible says, “Idle hands are the devil’s workshop.”  Or at least

There is a side of the Civil War that many don’t know about, or just ignore.  It was not so unusual for troops from opposite sides to mingle, talk and share or trade items, and generally act friendly when not engaged in fighting each other. Here is a portion of a letter sent from a Confederate

Some may wonder why the South remembers the Civil War as it does. After all, the losses were horrific to both North and South. Most of the war was fought on Southern soil. Small towns and countryside were trampled, occupied and battered for years. Major urban centers were ripped to pieces. The burning of Atlanta

A biographer has called him the “Tejano Tiger.” His name is Col. Santos Benavides.  He was the highest-ranking Hispanic in the Confederacy. Over 10,000 Tejanos, the Mexican-American inhabitants of southern Texas, fought in the Civil War in South Texas in over 100 significant battles.  Here is his inspirational story. Before serving with the Confederacy, Benavides had

Union General William T. Sherman called them “the most dangerous set of men which the war turned loose upon the world.”  The cowboys of of the 8th Texas Cavalry were known as Terry’s Texas Rangers, reckless men who didn’t much like discipline. A Confederate colonel once recommended that the commander of a Union regiment surrender

The Civil War memoirs of Private Samuel Watkins of Company H, 1st Tennessee Infantry are considered the best ever written by a common soldier of the field. His writing style is engaging, and often quite humorous. He masterfully captured the pride, misery, and glory experienced by the common foot soldier. Here’s another story.  It’s no

The Confederate Battle Flag has 13 stars for 13 states.  South Carolina seceded in December 1860, followed by five more states: Mississippi, Florida, Alabama, Georgia, and Louisiana  in January, and then Texas on the 1st of February.   These seven states met a few days later in Montgomery, Alabama, and formed the Confederate States of America.