Description
Impact of the Telegraph during the Civil War
The inventor Samuel Morse begins experimenting with telegraphy in 1838 with messages sent over two miles of line. From there, financial backing from Maine congressman Francis Smith enables Morse and his partner, Arthur Vail, to string 44 miles of transmission lines between DC and Baltimore. On May 24, 1844 they amaze onlookers in the capital […]
Obituaries XI – Union Generals Killed In Action
Despite ongoing research, scholars remain uncertain about the total number of soldiers killed during the war. The traditional estimate is 655,000, although other calls go as high as 698,000 to 725,000. Regardless of which is correct, the 1861-65 War Between the States is by far the nation’s bloodiest, with losses topping all of America’s other […]
Obituaries X – Confederate Officers Killed In Action
Despite ongoing research, scholars remain uncertain about the total number of soldiers killed during the war. The traditional estimate is 655,000, although other calls go as high as 698,000 to 725,000. Regardless of which is correct, the 1861-65 War Between the States is by far the nation’s bloodiest, with losses topping all of America’s other […]
Obituaries IX – Notable Tycoons
Beginning in 1789, Anti-Federalists fears about the negative political effects of having a concentration of wealth in too few private hands are met by Alexander Hamilton’s commitment to capitalism. The success of his strategy is already evident by 1850 as the new nation moves into third place versus its European counterparts on per capita GDP. […]
Obituaries VII – Supreme Court Justices
A total of five men served as Chief Justices of the Court between 1789 and 1864. One of them, South Carolina’s John Rutledge, was quickly removed by the Senate. The Five “Courts” Up To The Civil War The Jay Court Rutledge * Ellsworth Marshall Taney Court Begins Oct 19, 1789 Aug 12, 1795 Mar 8, […]
Obituaries VIII – Notable Newspaper Editors
Immigrants who come to the British colonies in America arrive with a tradition of, and firm commitment to, both literacy and newspapers. In 1704, the first continuously published newspaper starts up in Massachusetts, a weekly, The Boston News Letter, which runs up to 1776. By the 1830’s America boasts some 900 papers, twice the count […]
Fashion: Civil War Dress
During the war, both sides eventually settle on standardized uniforms for their troops. Thus for the Union: And for the Confederates: However, conforming to these standards is regularly observed in the breech. The Confederates exhibit their homespun styles, most famously on the right below with the set of three still cocky Confederates captured at Gettysburg. […]
Fashion: Mourning
Rituals related to mourning the dead in early 19th century America differ sharply by social class. For the commoners, time could stop only momentarily to put a black ribbon on the front door, lay a casket out in the parlor, have the local preacher say a few prayers in the presence of family and friends, […]
Obituaries VI – Notable Women
Name Death Age Cause of death Birth State Main Achievements Phyllis Wheatley Dec 5, 1784 31 Pneumonia Africa slave Poetry Sacagawea Dec 20, 1812 24 Putrid fever Idaho Shoshoni, guides and travels with Lewis & Clark expedition from North Dakota to the Pacific, interpreter Mercy Otis Warren Oct 19, 1814 86 ? British Massachusetts Influential […]
Fashion: Facial Hair
Facial hair styles in the early 19th century are determined either by a man’s delicate skill at using a straight razor or by his regular access to a barber with that know-how. Shaving is thus a daily hassle, with a frequent default being a traditional beard such as worn by Jefferson Davis: Of course the […]