From the Editor
It is easy at this time of year consider all the things you want to do in the coming year. After all, ‘tis the season for New Year’s resolutions. It’s a chance to set goals and update the wish list of things to achieve, books to read, and places to visit. It is the time of year to aspire—and begin the work that lets us fulfill those aspirations.
But just as appropriately, it is a time to look back on the year just passed. We are, after all, people who study and write about history, so a backward glance is second nature. That’s true even for those of us who are forward thinking.
In particular, take stock of your Civil War adventures this past year. Where did you get to go? What new sites did you visit? How did you experience a familiar place in a new way? Who did you get to meet? What did you learn?
Even if your trips came in the form of books that transported you from your favorite chair to far-off fields, where did you go? What did you enjoy about the writing? If you attended a talk or a roundtable meeting somewhere, who did you hear? What interests did they spark?
What inspired you? Who inspired you?
As we think about our past adventures, I am reminded of a favorite TED talk by filmmaker Louis
Schwartzberg. Schwartzberg is a big believer in the value of gratitude. Living a grateful life allows us to live a fuller life. You can watch his talk here. It’s really quite beautiful, I promise.
Approaching our Civil War adventures with a sense of gratitude can give us a deeper understanding of the stories we learn about as well as a deeper understanding of our own role in passing along those stories.
Perhaps you can also let the questions I’ve asked guide you as you look ahead toward 2025’s adventures. What’s something new you can discover? What new footsteps can you walk in? How can you stretch your knowledge and challenge your understanding?
How might you take your Civil War passion to the next level, to be more actively engaged, to help pass the story on so that the next generation can learn from its lessons? How might you offer help to a favorite site, through time, talent or treasure? How might you go from not only being a student of history to being a steward?
As Thomas Jefferson wrote to his friend John Adams in 1816, “I like the dreams of the future better than the history of the past.” I do, too—but I also know we need both. This is the perfect time of year to stand at the intersection of those two points and allow them to illuminate each other.
— Chris Mackowski, Ph.D.
Editor-in-Chief, Emerging Civil War
(In the Photo: Chris with John Griffiths, one of Ulysses S. Grant's great great grandsons)
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Eleventh Annual Emerging Civil War Symposium at Stevenson Ridge
Time is ticking down and tickets are now on sale for our 11th Annual Symposium that will take place August 1–3, 2025, at Stevenson Ridge in Spotsylvania Court House, Virginia. The theme will be “The Cities of War,” with keynote speaker Harold Holzer and a Sunday tour by John Hennessy. It is for sure going to be a great time. Pack up the family and come enjoy a great event!
For tickets visit our Symposium page.
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Neil Chatelain recently spoke about his book Treasure and Empire in the Civil War to the Tallahassee History Roundtable.
Jon-Erik Gilot Jon-Erik Gilot asks ECW readers to consider attending the 2025 Civil War symposium at the Andrew Carnegie Free Library in Carnegie, PA. Scheduled for April 11–12, the symposium will focus on the Maryland Campaign and include lectures by Scott Hartwig, Dennis Frye, John Hoptak, Ashley Whitehead Luskey, Kevin Pawlak, Harry Smeltzer, and a live recording of the Antietam & Beyond Podcast with John Banks and Tom McMillan. The weekend also includes author book signings, an expansive book sale, raffles, Espy Post tours, and tastings/bottle sales from Arsenal Cider—a Civil War-themed hard cider distillery. Tickets are only $85 and are on sale now! For more information and to purchase tickets, please visit their website at 2025 Carnegie Civil War Symposium.
Winter is here and it's a good time to write, so Dwight Hughes is deep into his next book. Not much else is happening except getting ready for Christmas and looking forward to a great New Year. Happy Holidays to all!
Chris Kolakowski recently spoke on the Battle of the Bulge for the Commemorative Air Force. The link to the talk is here: Battle of the Bulge for the Commemorative Air Force.
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Kevin Donovan wishes a Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays to all! He also includes an awesome reminder of one of the first drawings of Santa Claus which was penned for Harpers Weekly by cartoonist Thomas Nast in January of 1863. | |
Patrick Young of The Reconstruction Era Blog played Santa Claus on Dec 22 at First Brooklyn Unitarian Church, where I was photographed last year. The church was erected in 1844. During the Civil War, it helped organize the Brooklyn Sanitary Fair. General Francis Barlow's father was the pastor of the Church between 1834 and 1837, before the 1844 structure was built. Francis Barlow was born in Brooklyn in 1834 when his father took over the pastor's role. | |
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The new Emerging Civil War webstore has officially launched on the website!
You can now start ordering for the Civil War enthusiasts in your family: t-shirts, polos, cups, hats, books, and much more!
Visit the website store to order today!
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ECW Bookshelf
As 2024 draws to a close, we reflect on the achievements of our contributors and authors who have published many great books this year. This was a wonderful year for "emerging" voices in the field. The year provided a talented line-up of authors—many of them first-time authors—to add their voice and expertise to help preserve history and educate others. It was a great way for us to continue to promote emerging talent in the field of Civil War public history.
If you are looking to fill the bookshelf with some of the books published over this past year, this is a go-to list!
A Fine Opportunity Lost: James Longstreet’s East Tennessee Campaign, November 1863-April 1864
by Col. Ed Lowe (Ret.) (part of the Emerging Civil War Series from Savas Beatie)
Never Such a Campaign: The Battle of Second Manassas, August 28-August 30, 1862
by Dan Welch and Kevin Pawlak (part of the Emerging Civil War Series from Savas Beatie)
The Army Under Fire: The Politics of Antimilitarism in the Civil War Era
by Cecily Zander
Treasure and Empire in the Civil War
by Neil Chatelain
Dranesville: A Northern Virginia Town in the Crossfire of a Forgotten Battle
by Ryan T. Quint
The War in the Western Theater
co-edited by Chris Mackowski and Sarah Kay Bierle (part of the Emerging Civil War 10th Anniversary Series from Savas Beatie)
The Blood-Tinted Waters of the Shenandoah: The 1864 Valley Campaign’s Battle of Cool Spring, July 17-18, 1864
by Johnathan Noyalas (part of the Emerging Civil War Series from Savas Beatie)
The Lead Mine Men: The Enduring 45th Illinois Volunteer Infantry
by Thomas B. Mack (part of the Engaging the Civil War Series from Southern Illinois University Press)
Race to the Potomac: Lee and Meade after Gettysburg, July 4-14, 1863
by Bradley M. Gottfried and Linda I. Gottfried (part of the Emerging Civil War Series from Savas Beatie)
A Tempest of Iron and Lead: Spotsylvania Court House, May 8-21, 1864
by Chris Mackowski
WCU 150: History and Heritage
edited by Aaron Stoyack and Michael A. Di Giovine
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ECW Multimedia
On the Emerging Civil War Podcast in December, Chris Mackowski was joined by
For a full episode guide from 2024, click here.
You can find video versions of these podcasts and other exclusive interviews and content on our YouTube page, including a series of interviews with speakers from this year's ECW Symposium.
You can listen for free on Spotify or Apple Podcasts, or at https://emergingcivilwar.com/the-emerging-civil-war-podcast/.
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Shrouded Veterans
by Frank Jasztrembski
A government-issued veteran headstone was installed for Colonel John Mitchell Power. On April 20, 1861, was elected lieutenant colonel of the 3rd Pennsylvania Infantry and was honorably mustered out three months later. On August 10, 1861, he was appointed colonel of the 76th Pennsylvania Infantry (also known as the "Keystone Zouaves"). A year later, he resigned "on account of ill health" due to "anemia and functional disease of the heart."
Several influential Pennsylvania businessmen and politicians wrote to Secretary of War Edwin M. Stanton, urging him to appoint Power as a paymaster in the U.S. Army. Managers of Wood, Morrell & Co. in Johnstown wrote in September 1862 that Power was "an elegant gentleman" and that his "knowledge of accounts and experience as a businessman," while working in a similar role at Cambria Iron Works, made him well-suited for the position. Despite their favorable recommendations, Stanton never appointed Power as a paymaster.
On September 10, 1897, Power died in St. Louis, Missouri, and his remains were returned to New Castle for burial at Greenwood Cemetery. A large number of veterans from the 76th Pennsylvania attended, and six served as pallbearers. The services were conducted by Presbyterian minister Rev. Harvey S. Jordan, assisted by his father, Rev. William H. Jordan, who had served as chaplain of the 150th Illinois Infantry during the Civil War.
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Emerging Revolutionary War News
If one asks for a connection between the American Revolution and the month of December, the first that comes to mind is the beginning of the Ten Crucial Days that led to the victory of Trenton in 1776. If you need a refresher, pick up a copy of Mark Maloy's book Victory or Death, part of the popular Emerging Revolutionary War Series.
Or listen or watch one of the popular "Rev War Revelries" on podcast or YouTube, either about the Ten Crucial Days or sort through to a topic of the Revolutionary War Era you are most interested in. New "Revelries" are every other week, Sunday evenings. Check www.emergingrevolutionarywar.org for details and lineup.
Emerging Revolutionary War's fifth annual bus tour, discussing the Philadelphia Campaign of 1777, is now filled. But, as November 2025 nears, check in on the blog and social media channels for posts and "Revelries" about the campaign to follow along.
As the calendar turns, ERW historian Mark Wilcox will be out and about around the Richmond, Virginia area. He is speaking at the Charles City Courthouse on January 11 on a small skirmish that occurred there on January 8, 1781. It was a continuation of sorts of Arnold’s raid on Richmond. He is also speaking on Dunmore’s War for the Chesterfield County Historical Society on January 22.
Hope everyone has a Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays!
Remember to follow us on YouTube, Facebook, and the blog to keep current on the history of the Revolutionary War era!
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You Can Help Support Emerging Civil War
Emerging Civil War is a 501(c)3 not-for-profit organization. If you’re interested in supporting “emerging voices” by making a tax-deductible donation, you can do so by visiting our website: www.emergingcivilwar.com; you can mail us a check at the address below (make checks payable to "Emerging Civil War"); or you can make a gift through PayPal.
Thank you!
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January
8: Chris Mackowski, “The Rise of Grant,” Grant Cottage Book Club (virtual)
14: Neil P. Chatelain, “Treasure and Empire in the Civil War,” Fort Worth Civil War Round Table, Fort Worth, TX
15: Chris Mackowski, “A Tempest of Iron and Lead: Spotsylvania Court House,” Phil Kearny Civil War Roundtable (virtual)
16: Bert Dunkerly, “Arnold’s Raid on Richmond,” Wilton House Museum, Richmond, VA
21: Chris Mackowski, “The Last Days of Stonewall Jackson,” Holland Land Office Museum, Batavia, NY
21: Bert Dunkerly, ”Civil War Railroads,” LA CWRT, Los Angeles, CA (Zoom)
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