The Army could have renamed Fort Bragg after the Union General Bragg
Fort Bragg, North Carolina, is famous as the home of the Army Airborne and Special Operations Forces. Named after North Carolina native General Braxton Bragg, it was one of a…
Today in military history: World’s first combat submarine sinks
On Oct. 15, 1863, the CSS Hunley, the world’s first successful combat submarine, sank. For the second time…and also not the last… Hunley, named for her inventor, Horace Lawson Hunley,…
Why the South was actually fearful of President Lincoln’s assassination
When John Wilkes Booth shot President Abraham Lincoln on April 14, 1865, he was acting in support of the South, of slavery, and his fervent belief that Lincoln was out…
Today in military history: Confederate victory at Chickamauga
On Sep. 20, 1863, the Confederate Army of Tennessee defeated the Union Army at Chickamauga Creek — the “River of Death” according to the Cherokee. The Union Army of the…
The last shots of the American Civil War were fired in Russia
Historians don’t talk much about naval action during the Civil War, certainly not as much as they do about the ground combat. If it’s not about a riverboat, the Monitor and the Merrimack, or damning torpedoes, it just doesn’t get the same attenti…
Mark Twain quit his Confederate Ranger unit before the Civil War ever reached him
There were many who served in the Civil War who would later become famous, be they politicians, presidents, and even writers. One of the writers who signed up for Confederate…
The slave who stole a confederate ship and sailed his way to freedom
On May 12, 1862, a gentleman named Robert Smalls was aboard a Confederate transport ship pretending to be doing his normal duties. In reality, he was preparing to take a risk that could cost him his life.
Smalls was a pilot for the Confede…
Meet the prolific Confederate spy dubbed the ‘siren of the South’
A Confederate soldier survived a head shot and spit the bullet out 58 years later
Civil War weapons were known to cause massive amounts of damage to the human body. Large caliber arms could shatter bones, force amputations, and end a soldier’s life in the…
Why the Union targeted Confederate salt works during the Civil War
Salt today isn’t nearly as prized as it was in days gone by. Before refrigeration made preserving food so easy, it was a highly prized commodity. During the days of…