Tag: Civil War

History Lessons

Copperhead and the flag

The 150th anniversaries of the Battle of Gettysburg and the Gettysburg Address have passed, and their flags have been folded. But the observance of the sesquicentennial of the Civil War continues in 2014. With more than a year to go before peace would arrive, 1864 dawned with more battles and more division. Gov. Horatio Seymour… continue

History Lessons

Waitman Willey salutes flag

In 1861, as talk of secession escalated before Fort Sumter, Bull Run and Gettysburg, southerners had to make a decision about the U.S. flag. Would they continue to honor it as a symbol of their unity, or would they toss it to the ground in order to raise a Confederate banner? In Virginia, one of… continue

History Lessons

Mystical night, magical tune

Perhaps the most famous march composed by John Philip Sousa, the celebrated March King, is “The Stars and Stripes Forever,” a tribute to the American flag. One of the least-known aspects of the tune is that it originated on Christmas Day in a mysterious fashion. Sousa’s childhood during the Civil War was marked by marches… continue

History Lessons

Fixing flags and saving standards

A Tennessee battalion's ruined banner

They were torn at the Battle of Gettysburg, shot full of holes at Bull Run and ruined by storms in encampments from Maine to Florida. They were the worn-out flags of the Civil War – Old Glory, the Stars and Bars of the Confederacy, and regimental colors. An example is a flag carried by the… continue

History Lessons

Cherished and despised Civil War banners

By James Breig A recent post examined how, during the Civil War 150 years ago, the U.S. flag became more beloved in the North and deeply despised in the South. At Gettysburg, Shiloh, Vicksburg and other battles, the Union troops marched proudly beneath Old Glory, while their Dixie opponents had their own banner to cherish…. continue