TOCWOC – A Civil War Blog

Month: October 2007

  • Why did Everton Conger burn down Richard Garrett’s tobacco barn?

    Of all the stories regarding Everton J. Conger and his successful capture of John Wilkes Booth, one that has always intrigued me is why did Conger decide it was time to fire Richard Garrett’s tobacco barn after hours of making what seemed empty threats to do so? From Conger’s own testimony all we get is […]

  • Civil War Talk Radio: October 19, 2007

    Air Date: 101907 Subject: Civil War Era Law Cases Book: Terrible Swift Sword: The Legacy of John Brown Guest: Paul Finkelman Summary: Paul Finkelman discusses famous Civil War related law cases. Brett’s Summary: Paul Finkelman, the President William McKinley Distinguished Professor of Law and Public Policy at Albany Law School, was Gerry’s guest in this […]

  • This Granger and Steedman Thing!

    I have long been somewhat mildly disturbed by the story of the “last moment” arrival of Major General Gordon Granger with Brigadier General James B. Steedman’s First Division of the Reserve Corps of the Army of the Cumberland to the aid of Major General George H. Thomas in the late afternoon of September 20, 1863 […]

  • Did your ancestors serve in the ACW?

    Over the past few years, a few folks in my extended family have been researching the family’s history, which can be traced to the 17th century in Europe (England and Germany). Of interest to me was the number of Civil War ancestors. I knew that my great-great-grandfather, William Sisson, fought in the 60th Ohio at […]

  • Grant Finally Underestimates the South

    I never quite grasped where such strong feelings towards the Confederacy come from. Some southerners (certainly not all) pine for and bemoan a government that barely existed 150 years ago- a country founded in war and never tested for its mettle outside that war. As a “northerner” born and raised in the heart of Yankee […]

  • Gettysburg Magazine

    This was cross-posted on my blog earlier tonight. I own the complete run of Gettysburg Magazine, all 37 issues. For those keeping score, at two issues per year, that makes 19 years’ worth of magazines. It’s the ONLY magazine that I’ve EVER purchased where I’ve kept every single issue, including North and South, where I […]

  • A forgotten part of the Gettysburg Campaign

    There are more than 1,000 books that have been published over the past century and a half concerning the Battle of Gettysburg, and thousands of magazine and newspaper articles, as well as other written prose on the fighting. Only a handful focus on the retreat from Gettysburg (with Eric and J.D.’s new book in 2008 […]