Civil War Journal

Lincoln picks Ulysses S. Grant, a general who believes in winning at any cost, to command the Union Army.

In Philadelphia in 1776, a bargain was struck to allow slavery in the new United States—a deal that would lead to disaster, and help spark the Civil War between North and South almost a century later.

Families are divided and bonds broken forever as people are forced to chose between the Union and the newly created Confederate states.

Explore how photographer Mathew Brady's work brought the horrors of war to American's doorsteps for the first time.

Fought on September 17, 1862, the Battle of Antietam produced over 23,000 Union and Confederate casualties, making it the bloodiest single day in American history.

The story of one of the Union's most famous units. Mustered in the Midwest, they served with enormous distinction while suffering heavy losses.

Trains...both sides needed them, but it was the Union who had the know-how and equipment to make use of this invaluable tool.

The remarkable tales of the very young men who rose to high rank in the war, including Galusha Pennypacker, Adelbert Ames, and Micah Jenkins.

The Union general who, before the war, became the first defendant in a murder trial to be acquitted on a plea of temporary insanity. Sickles killed a man he accused of having an affair with his wife.

Mary Todd Lincoln and Varina Davis were two women from rival governments, but they led parallel lives, struggling against criticism, personal tragedies, and an agonizing war.

How the average soldier coped with life on and off the battlefield, including drinking and gambling, music, and even a new game called baseball.

Engaged in the bloodiest fighting of the Civil War, nearly 30,000 soldiers are killed in three days of fighting at Gettysburg. Many of these brave souls are forgotten as they fall.

One in five soldiers who fought in the war had been born in another country and would fight on both sides. But they were not always welcome.

A look at individual and organizational efforts to preserve our precious national monuments, including Gettysburg cemetery, at risk of being spoiled by encroachment of commercial interest.