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The Southern Confederate soldier was a tough character, and one of the finest warriors to ever take the field of battle in any army, in any war. The cause for which he fought and died has been harshly judged. But from the Confederate point of view, the harsh conditions and suffering were as noble as […]

Why would an innocent and  good looking, blond haired, blue eyed, 21 year old Confederate man, weighing barely 100 pounds, be called “the most dangerous man in Arkansas?”   The exploits of Howell A. “Doc” Rayburn are a legacy of fact and legend. Doc was a Civil War guerrilla chieftain who operated in the area between

Martin Van Buren Bates was a normal baby born to normal parents in Letcher County, Kentucky, in 1837. But he was not destined to be “normal” for long. At the age seven he started a tremendous growth spurt. By the time he was thirteen, he had grown to a height of over 6 feet, and

No other Confederate officer had the mystique of John Singleton Mosby, a talented and heroic cavalry officer. He was an unlikely hero. As a sickly child Mosby was often bullied, but he learned to fight back at an early age. When the Civil War began, Mosby opposed secession, but decided to leave his law practice

Animals of all kinds were part of the Civil War and very valuable in their working roles and on the battlefield. Horses, mules, donkeys, and even camels accompanied the troops during campaigns.  In modern warfare, dogs are often seen on duty, helping their human comrades in and around the battlefield. It was not uncommon for

 No battle of the war saw more troops on the field than the Battle of Fredericksburg. Although greatly outnumbered, Lee’s army was ready for the fight.  Union artillery pounded Fredericksburg for over two hours, the first time a commander ordered a large-scale city bombardment during the war. Fires broke out, buildings fell to the ground,

It was 1863. Union gunboats were a threat to the Texas interior because of rivers that emptied into the Gulf of Mexico. A fort built was at one of these vulnerable points:  Sabine Pass, where two rivers meet the Gulf.   A Texas artillery unit was sent to man the fort.   It was not long before

In an earlier post we got a 10 year old girl’s view of the war as Sherman started his destructive march through Georgia.(Click here to read.) Here are more details. Needless to say that there will never be a statue like the one above honoring Union General Sherman in Georgia. And here’s the reason why.

After capturing Atlanta in September 1864 during the Civil War, Maj. Gen. William T. Sherman,  ordered the destruction of all railroads, factories, and commercial buildings of possible use to the Confederacy. Though houses and churches were not targeted, some were looted and burned nonetheless. Here’s one of the many stories. Ten-year-old Carrie Berry and her

Randolph Harrison McKim enlisted as a Confederate private at the beginning of the Civil War. He rose through the ranks to become a lieutenant. After the war, he became pastor of the Episcopal Church of the Epiphany in Washington, D.C., where he served for 32 years.  McKim wrote a book about his experiences in the