As I approach graduation, I seem to be continuously fielding questions about my major in undergrad, and my career goals. Usually when I say that I’ve studied history and wish to work in museums, I get the glazed eyes and the confused, “why?” which usually sounds more like “why on Earth would you want to [...]
When thinking about the Civil War, I find it interesting to consider that there were two American governments operating at the same time. They were fighting one another desperately and had some important differences, but much of the Confederacy was modeled after the set up of the United States. They both had Cabinet members, Constitutions [...]
Hello faithful Connection followers! I hope everyone is enjoying some nice spring weather, and not suffering from allergies. I believe I hinted to this last week, but today I’m going to discuss the Secret Service. I think I tell you every time I do a blog that it’s topic is something of interest to me, [...]
On this day, April 9th, 148 years ago Confederate General Robert E. Lee and the Army of Northern Virginia laid down their weapons and surrendered to Union General Ulysses S. Grant in the small town of Appomattox, Virginia. Almost exactly four years before, on April 12, 1861, the Confederates had begun shooting on Fort Sumter, [...]
When driving to and from school, I always note the number of battlefields I pass. There’s Fredericksburg and Chancellorsville up along I-95 in Northern Virginia, and when I hit I-295 outside of Richmond, I always note the sign for Cold Harbor. Due to its central location and the fact that Washington D.C. was caught between [...]
Hello faithful Connections readers! Today covers part two of my series on women during the war, and discusses women spies! During the Civil War, women received a substantial amount of power as a result of the men being required to leave home and engage in battle. The lack of a male presence within the household [...]
Prior to the Civil War, women in the United States of America had a clearly defined role within society. For the majority of women, this meant remaining in the private sphere and caring for their families. Even one of our founding fathers, Thomas Jefferson, believed that the role of women was to “sooth and calm [...]
Prior to the start of the Civil War, there was no medal to recognize the outstanding efforts and bravery of the members of the armed forces. It was first introduced as a bill within the Senate by Iowa Senator James W. Grimes, in December 1861. This first bill focused on a medal just for members [...]
Some of my favorite stories of the Civil War are the ones about events of pure coincidence. One of these stories is the tale of Wilmer McLean, and his poor choice of housing for himself and his family. In 1853, McLean and his wife Virginia Beverly Hooe Mason moved into a rural area west of [...]
Hello faithful Connections followers! I apologize for the recent lack of blogs. I spent the past week frolicking in the Bahamas for my spring break, but I have a full post about the history of the Bahamas, and their Civil War Connections. Some friends and I went on a cruise, and were able to see [...]
