More Info »

More Info »

Filmmaker Steven Spielberg talks about the Battle of Gettysburg and Abraham Lincoln’s legacy at an event marking the anniversary of Lincoln’s Gettysburg Address. Mr. Spielberg is the director of the film “Lincoln,” which is based on the book “Team of Rivals” by Doris Kearns Goodwin and focuses on President Lincoln’s last months in office. This event took place at the Soldiers’ National Cemetery in Gettysburg, Pennsylvania.

More Info »

Author James Robertson discusses the life, death and legacy of Confederate General Thomas “Stonewall” Jackson. He talks about General Jackson’s childhood, his education at West Point, and his military career. Mr. Robertson also looks at the Battle of Chancellorsville, where General Jackson was mortally wounded on May 2, 1863, in a “friendly fire” incident. He died of medical complications eight-days later. The Hanover Tavern in Virginia and the Museum of the Confederacy co-hosted this event. 

More Info »

Mary Elizabeth Bowser was a former slave who became a Union spy in the Confederate capital of Richmond, Virginia. She was part of a pro-Union underground spy ring run by Elizabeth Van Lew, the daughter of a prominent Richmond citizen. In this program, authors Elizabeth Varon and Lois Leveen talk about the life and story of Ms. Bowser, as well as her relationship with Ms. Van Lew. The two authors also discuss how they wrote and researched their books. The event took place at the Museum of the Confederacy in Richmond.

More Info »

The Catoctin Center for Regional Studies hosted a two-day conference on African Americans and the Civil War at Frederick Community College in Maryland. In this program, you'll hear first from historian James McPherson, who examines the reasons for recruiting black soldiers for the war effort. He also discusses the shift from fighting to preserve the Union to fighting to end slavery. Then, Columbia University history professor Barbara Fields looks at racism and slavery during the Civil War era and the motives behind emancipation.
 

More Info »

The National Park Service rededicates Arlington House, the Robert E. Lee Memorial. As the nation marks the 150th anniversary of the Civil War and after a six-year restoration effort, Americans can once again see the house much as Lee knew it.

More Info »

Historian Frank O’Reilly of the National Park Service discusses the Battle of Chancellorsville, which was fought from April 30th to May 6th, 1863, in Spotsylvania County, Virginia. The fighting resulted in more than 30 thousand total causalities. Historians widely consider the Battle of Chancellorsville to be Confederate General Robert E. Lee’s greatest victory.

More Info »

Scholars discuss the contributions of U.S. Colored Troops during the Civil War and how they are remembered at various battle sites. The panel also takes a critical look at the characterization of black troops in the 1989 film “Glory,” which focuses on the 54th Massachusetts – one of the first all-black units to fight for the Union. This event was part of a conference at Gettysburg College in Pennsylvania.

More Info »

Civil War scholars give a historical perspective on the physical and mental battlefield trauma suffered by soldiers in fighting the bloodiest war in American history. More than 625,000 Americans died in the Civil War, and some historians believe the death toll exceeded 700,000. This event was part of a conference at Gettysburg College in Pennsylvania.

More Info »