On April 15th,1861, President Abraham Lincoln called for 75,000 troops in response to the rebellion that had commenced three days earlier when Confederate forces fired on Fort Sumter in Charleston Harbor. Response to the call in the northern states was immediate. The 6th Massachusetts Infantry, a militia unit that had formed earlier in the year, [...]
Continue reading about The Baltimore Riot of April 19th, 1861
Pennsylvania contributed extensively to the Union cause in the Civil War. Over 425.000 Pennsylvanians served in the Union Army and Navy, in well over 200 regiments of infantry, cavalry and artillery. Although a few units served with the western armies, the vast majority served in the Army of the Potomac. There were numerous distinguished and [...]
Continue reading about Pennsylvania’s Civil War Sesquicentennial Commemoration
Many Civil War units had mascots, but perhaps the most famous of these was Old Abe the War Eagle, the mascot of the 8th Wisconsin Infantry. Old Abe was a bald eagle that not only accompanied his regiment on marches and in camp, he went into battle as well. In 1861, a Native American named [...]
Continue reading about Old Abe the War Eagle: Mascot of the 8th Wisconsin Infantry
