CIVIL WAR

A photograph of Harriet Tubman taken by Harvey B. Lindsley in the 1870s.

Archaeologists Have Located the Site of Harriet Tubman’s Family Home in Maryland

The Underground Railroad conductor honed her wilderness skills around the cabin her father built in the 1840s.

James Garfield sometime between 1855 and 1865.

The Library of Congress Needs Your Help Transcribing James Garfield’s Diaries

James Garfield kept detailed diaries from his teen years right up until the day before his assassination.

Absentee Ballot vs. Mail-In Ballot: What’s the Difference?

States are changing their vote-by-mail rules for this year’s general election. Here's what you need to know.

An 1864 illustration by William Waud of Union soldiers voting in Pennsylvania.

The Civil War Beginnings of America’s Absentee Ballots

Abraham Lincoln was up for reelection in 1864, and Republicans thought soldiers’ absentee ballots could help.

The 1851 Christiana Riot put the Fugitive Slave Act of 1850 on trial.

The 1851 Christiana Resistance: The Forgotten First Shots of the Civil War

On September 11, 1851, a small farming in Pennsylvania united against slavery and fought what many consider the first battle of the Civil War.

You Can Now Read Thousands of Abraham Lincoln's Personal Letters Online

About half of the 40,000 documents in the Library of Congress's Lincoln Papers Collection are now available to search and read digitally online.

An illustration depicting fugitives along the Underground Railroad in Maryland, taken from William Still's 1872 book The Underground Railroad.

9 Unsung Heroes of the Underground Railroad

You already know Harriet Tubman—here are nine other heroes who smuggled fugitives to freedom on the Underground Railroad.

"What I want to see before I die is a monument representing the negro, not couchant on his knees like a four-footed animal, but erect on his feet like a man," Frederick Douglass wrote in response to this memorial in 1876.

Newly Discovered Letter From Frederick Douglass Discusses the Need for Better Monuments

A monument in Washington D.C. depicts Abraham Lincoln standing tall beside a crouching Black man—here’s what Frederick Douglass had to say about it.

Abolitionist William Lloyd Garrison devoted his life to opposing slavery.

The Boston Public Library Needs Help Transcribing Anti-Slavery Letters

The letters shed light on how leading abolitionists were protesting slavery during the Civil War era.

Next month, the city council will vote on the removal of this Confederate statue in Pensacola, Florida.

Confederate Monuments Are Coming Down Across the Country—And Historians Aren’t Surprised

Here’s some history to help explain why so many Confederate statues are being taken down (or toppled).

That red ribbon is the literal "red tape" that we now use as an idiom to describe bureaucratic processes.

The Arlington National Cemetery Just Opened Its Time Capsule from 1915—See What’s Inside

The items from Woodrow Wilson’s century-old time capsule are on virtual display just in time for Memorial Day.

A stretch of Old Dixie Highway in Homestead, Florida.

Miami’s Dixie Highway Will Become Harriet Tubman Highway

"Dixie"—a word associated with the Confederate States of America and slavery—will no longer be on Miami-Dade County’s road signs.

An illustration of Abraham Lincoln delivering the Gettysburg Address from 1905.

8 Momentous Facts About Abraham Lincoln’s Gettysburg Address

Much longer than four score and seven years ago, Abraham Lincoln delivered the most famous two-minute speech in history.

Cannons used in the Civil War are on display at Fort Sumter.

10 Facts About Fort Sumter

The 1861 Battle of Fort Sumter sparked the American Civil War. From the garrison's 19th-century beginnings to its current use as a National Historical Park, here are 10 fascinating facts about Fort Sumter.

Civil War-Era ‘Witch Bottle’ Used to Keep Evil Spirits at Bay Discovered in Virginia

The old bottle filled with rusted nails looks like trash, but it was actually used by a Union soldier to ward off evil spirits during the Civil War.

Dolly Parton performs on the Oprah Winfrey Show in 1991.

Tennessee Politician Wants to Replace State Capitol Statue of Confederate General With Dolly Parton

Tennessee native Dolly Parton is a universally beloved country music legend. Nathan Bedford Forrest is not.

Civil War Cannonballs Found on South Carolina Beach in Aftermath of Hurricane Dorian

Hurricane Dorian uncovered two Civil War cannonballs on South Carolina's Folly Beach—and it's not the first time cannonballs have washed up there.

Ashley Wilkes’s Mansion From Gone With the Wind Is For Sale

Bidding starts at $1 million for the newly renovated mansion, used for Ashley Wilkes’s family home in 'Gone With the Wind.'

The Reason We Celebrate Flag Day

Support for Flag Day, a sometimes-overlooked holiday, was ignited during the Civil War. But there was a commercial purpose behind it.

Mathew Brady, National Archives and Records Administration // Public Domain

14 Surprising Facts About Clara Barton

To call Clara Barton just a nurse insults her legacy, despite what your history teacher might have taught you.

Conrad Wise Chapman, Public Domain, Wikimedia Commons

Where Did the Ex-Confederate Leaders Go After the Confederacy Was Defeated by the Union?

Some went to prison. Others went into business.

Chemung County Historical Society, Elmira, NY

John W. Jones: The Runaway Slave Who Buried Nearly 3000 Confederate Soldiers

He saved lives on the Underground Railroad—then cared for the Confederate dead.

The Key to Robert E. Lee's Puzzling Death Might Be Hidden in a Photo of His Earlobe

The Confederate Army general's death stumped his doctors—but now we might have a clue about what happened.

Photograph of Jefferson Davis in Women’s Clothing

After the Civil War, popular prints and doctored photographs played on the idea that Confederate president Jefferson Davis had been arrested wearing women’s clothes.

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