Genealogy Reviews Online

American Civil War Research Database

Bloat...this is the best word to describe my Firefox bookmarks.  I have a tendency to bookmark just about everything interesting I find on the Internet.  I always intend to visit them later, but since I'm constantly finding new items of interest, these usually get forgotten because of the latest new site I find.  Cleaning out these bookmarks wasn't on my new years resolutions for genealogy, but I should have put it in there.  For the last few weeks I've been trying to reduce the bloat a little and in the process I've found a number of gems I wanted to revisit, but for some reason never did.

One of these gems is the American Civil War Research Database.  Probably the last time I visited this site was back in 2003 or 2004.  It was close to the beginning of my genealogy quest, but apparently I found no ancestors so I never thought to return.  When I did return the other day, I found a huge database with over 4 million individual Soldier records; over 4000 regimental rosters; 3500 regimental chronicles; over 1000 officer profiles; almost 18000 photos; and over 3000 battle synopses.  I was surprised this database grew so big.  The database status page has more detailed statistics if your interested. 

Unfortunately this is not one of those free databases one sometimes finds, but I think the cost involved is reasonable.  You can buy a year long subscription for $25 or you can buy a 7 day visitor's pass for $10, but you only get access to the soldier data and not the other features you'll find listed on the site.    

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Another Civil War Causality

One hundred forty years ago Civil War Sailors, as part of a gun crew, loaded and armed a 9 inch 75 pound projectile into a cannon and fired it at a target.  They probably did this scores of times, but this one seemingly was a dud - it didn't explode.  I'm sure in the heat of battle this crew didn't even notice because they were concentrating on loading the next cannonball.  Flash forward 140 years and we find a Civil War relic hunter named Sam White trying to disarm it in his driveway when it explodes - killing him and destroying his property.

I know this is a tragedy for the man, his family and friends, but I started thinking about this Navy gun crew and wonder if, in their wildest imagination, they could ever conceive that a weapon they armed and fired in the 1860s would end up killing someone in February of 2008.  Should Sam White be counted as a Civil War causality?

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Book Review - This Republic of Suffering by Drew Gilpin Faust

As I was reading the Washington Post this morning I came across a review of This Republic of Suffering, by Drew Gilpin Faust.  It just so happens I'm about half way through the book and thought I'd post my impressions so far.  The Washington Post review does a good job of capturing the essence of the story the author tells about death in the Civil War.  I'm not finished with it yet, but this work is unlike any I've read about this war.  Too often Civil War books are about great leaders and their tactics; battles and campaigns; politics; and all the other elements that make this time in United States history almost mythical.  What Faust actually does is show in vivid detail the dirty business of war. 

Regardless of who won or lost the battle, the author explores the aftermath - what do you do with all of the thousands of dead bodies littering the battlefield?  In our wars of today, every dead Soldier is recovered and buried with honors.  Each has a flag covered casket and a dignified funeral.  The families of each dead Soldier are assigned a Casualty Assistance Officer who guides them through the death benefit process which often can take months to settle.  As this fascinating book shows, the families of dead Civil War soldiers had none of this.  They were lucky to recover the bodies of their loved ones and many times had to go to the battlefields themselves to do it.

As I said, I'm only half way through, but I think this is a book anyone with an interest in the Civil War should read.  So far it's neither pro North or South.  It looks at the impact of of death on both sides and does a good job of balancing examples of each.  Be aware this book strips away all of the sterile notions of the glory of battles...it's about something only Soldiers really understand.  The Washington Post also had a link to another interesting article on the author - Drew Gilpin Faust

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New Lincoln Inaugral Photos Found at Library of Congress

Find Your Ancestors In Civil War Documents 

A Colorado man looking at Civil War photos while at the Library of Congress noticed three photo's of Lincoln's second inaugural apparently mislabeled as the Grant inauguration.  He reported his suspicions to Library officials who verified the photos were mislabeled.  I found the photos and story in the Los Angeles Times.  They aren't very clear, but you can see what the weather was like and the kinds of clothes people were wearing.  I tried enlarging the photos printed in the Los Angeles Times to get a better view, but that didn't improve the image.  I love these kinds of stories that pop up every now and then, and always wonder what other gems are hiding and waiting to be found.  The Library of Congress originally announced the discovery.      

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Civil War Letters

Can you imagine owning over 400 Civil War era letters, some from General Robert E. Lee, and really not know what you have?  That's what happened to Thomas Wilcox of Columbia, South Carolina.  Apparently the letters were in Wilcox' family for generations and he didn't know what he had until boredom lead him to take a look.  Of course there are always complications in these types of things.  These letters were supposed to be auctioned off in 2004, however the state of South Carolina stepped in and sued to gain possession claiming the letters constituted official state business because some involved state affairs during the Civil War.  A judge disagreed and Wilcox is going forward with the auction expected to bring in about $2 million.  Now why can't I ever find a stash like this?

Find Your Ancestors In Civil War Documents 

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$100,000 Prize Awarded to Military History Author

Find Your Ancestors In Civil War Documents 

An Associated Press story in the Washington Post reports that James M. McPherson was awarded the Pritzker Military Library Literature Ward "for lifetime achievement in military writing."  This award also includes a $100,000 honorarium.  I'm mentioning this because McPherson's Battle Cry of Freedom: The Civil War Era (for which he won the Pulitzer Prize) was one of the first books on the Civil War I read.  It was a great first book because it covered not only the major battles, but the political context of the times. 

Prologue - Summer 2007 Issue

Download Original Historical Documents

I just received my Summer 2007 issue of Prologue - a publication of the National Archives.  As soon as I found my magazine in the mail, I quickly went to the the website to make sure all of the articles in the hard copy were also posted online - most were, but some were listed with no links.  Luckily, the one I wanted to write about did have a link (the Smithsonian "Genealogy is Bunk" thing was in the back of my mind).   In this issue, the Genealogy Notes section had a very interesting article titled "Pre-Bureau" Records and Civil War African American Genealogy.  Written by Rebecca K. Sharp, the article discusses records available prior to the government setting up the Freedmen's Bureau.  Most of these records center around military efforts to take care of refugees as the Union forces defeated the Confederate armies.  The article is very well written, cited, and includes example photos of selected documents.  Here is a detailed description of these records with instructions on how to order.  Every time I read this magazine I just marvel at the types of information housed at the National Archives.  It's also very frustrating knowing the majority of the holdings are beyond the reach of most people - this is why I love the fact they are partnering with Footnote.com to get some of these documents digitized so people can discover them.  One of the articles written by the Archivist of the United States (Allen Weinstein), is titled Progress Toward a Goal of Greater Access and discusses his philosophy, and initiatives to make more of our country's history available to everyone.      

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Lincoln Health Day

Just a quick post before I go off to work.  I found two interesting stories about Lincoln today, and the subjects of both were his health - this must be Lincoln health day or something.  The first is an Associated Press article, reporting from a Maryland School of Medicine conference, about whether or not Lincoln would have survived his wounds if today's medical technology was around in 1865.   The second story from Reuters, is about a theory that Lincoln had contracted small pox not too long after he gave the Gettysburg Address.  I don't know why Lincoln's medical conditions are so hot today, but both articles represent a different slant on history.

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Great Civil War Blog

If you have an interest in the civil war like I do, you have to visit Civil War Memory.  This isn't the typical kind of site one finds all over the web that focuses only on battles or on one side of the conflict.  The great part is that many articles show how the study of the war is still relevant to issues we face today and still relevant to some of the problems we are dealing with today.  I've only had a chance to read a few of the posts, but in the coming days will work my way through as many as I can.  Check it out - it's a great read. 

Tax Day

Since today is the deadline for filing income tax returns, and I just sadly finished writing a check to the US Treasury, I thought this article on Civil War tax records would be a great way of "celebrating" the day.  The article is pretty good, but this link to the National Archives quarterly publication Prologue is even better.  I'm too drained (in more ways then one) from writing the income tax check to provide commentary on each article, so I will leave both to you to read.

Unheralded Union General

This is not genealogy unless of course you are descendant from a Civil War general, but I had to share this article with you.  I found it on Smithsonian.com, and it's about General George Henry Thomas - known as The Rock of Chickamauga.  Occasionally, I'm an avid reader of Civil War history - especially after I discovered a few years ago that I have at least two ancestors who served in the Union Army.  While I have read a little about him in the past, and knew he was known as one of the better battlefield commanders in the war, I didn't know much else.  This article explains why.  The Article also hints at flaws in the characters both General Grant and General Sherman.  The story is long, but is well worth the read.  By the way, the photo is credited to Rudy Ayordoa / David Perry Collection.