From the Editor

Sergeant Richard Kirkland of the 2nd South Carolina Infantry leans with a canteen over a wounded Federal soldier cradled in his arms. A bronze tablet recounts Kirkland’s story, delivering water to wounded enemies in the wake of the December 1862 battle of Fredericksburg. “Soldiers in blue and soldiers in gray repeated this incident many times throughout the Civil War,” the plaque says. “This Moment of Mercy sculpture pays homage to them and the uniquely American spirit of aiding those in need.”

Me and my group are not in Fredericksburg, though, where similar monument, titled The Angel of Marye’s Heights, stands in front of the infamous stone wall in the very area where Kirkland ministered to the wounded. Rather, we’re standing in front of the National Civil War Museum in Harrisburg, and this statue in front of the museum is our last stop before we hop on the bus for tour return trip to Gettysburg.

Stories such as Kirkland’s capture our attention and imagination for many reasons. We like to be reminded of common decency, kindness, and our shared humanity. We admire people willing to put themselves in harm’s way to help others. We struggle to make sense of the chaos and carnage of war.

While such scenes can inspire us, we have to be careful not to over-romanticize them. For as touching as this moment of mercy was, let’s not forget that, after Kirkland’s pause in the action, the men in these armies went right back to trying to kill each other—and they kept on trying to kill each other for another two-plus years. This monument captures only a sliver of the full timespan.

“Every monument has a story it wants you to remember,” I explain. “But remember: those stories aren’t histories. They are ways of remembering. The monument wants you to remember something a certain way.”

I call to mind the Virginia Memorial my groups has seen along West Confederate Avenue in Gettysburg. Atop it, Robert E. Lee stands majestic, heroic, gazing across the fields toward the Federal position along Cemetery Ridge. It is as idealized an image of Lee as has ever been created. But Lee also had a nasty temper: where is the monument of “angry Lee”? He had digestive problems at Gettysburg: where is the monument showing him doing the green-apple two-step? Lee owned slaves: where is the monument that shows Lee the slaveowner?

Just the mention of such portrayals ticks off many Lee admirers, but that also illustrates my point: people want to remember Lee in certain ways and sometimes only in certain ways. Monuments cast those specific memories into bronze or stone, further reinforcing them.

“Use monuments as critical thinking opportunities,” I tell the teachers. “Each has a story to tell, but each has a story it doesn’t tell, too. And each one has its own backstory. Asking questions about those things can help us better appreciate a fuller story and a more complicated history.”

— Chris Mackowski, Ph.D.

Editor-in-Chief, Emerging Civil War

Neil Chatelain just had an article titled "Charleston's 'Special Expedition' Torpedo Rowboats" in the Summer 2025 issue of Civil War Navy—The Magazine. With summer classes over, he spent mid-July with his wife Brittany touring the mountains and glaciers of Montana and Alberta.

Doug Crenshaw has been leading Seven Days and Cold Harbor tours.

Kevin C. Donovan just returned from England, where on June 28 he had the pleasure and honor of speaking to a British audience of American Civil War enthusiasts, members of the American Civil War Round Table of the United Kingdom. Kevin’s presentation topic, “The Court Martial of Fitz John Porter: Fair or Fixed?” was a legal analysis of the Porter trial, while also discussing the historical and political events that led to Maj. Gen. Porter's dismissal from the U.S. Army during the Civil War. Some 30 UK Round Table members attended the presentation, which was held at London’s Civil Service Club and also broadcast via Zoom link.

Also, Kevin's article, "Secession Revisited: A New Legal Analysis," was published in June in North & South, Series II, Vol. 4, No. 5.

Chris Kolakowski will be speaking about Simon Bolivar Buckner Jr. in a virtual program on August 13. Details and registration for the program can be found here. 

For those of you on the West Coast, ECW author Tonya Graham McQuade will be giving several book talks in the coming months on her book A State Divided: The Civil War Letters of James Calaway Hale and Benjamin Petree of Andrew County Missouri. Tonya will be speaking to the San Joaquin Valley Civil War Round Table group in Clovis, CA on September 11; the San Diego Civil War Round Table group in San Diego, CA on October 18; and the Peninsula Civil War Round Table in Redwood City, CA on October 21. She will also be hosting a BBQ and speaking to the South Bay Civil War Round Table group in San Jose, CA on September 6, with a focus at that meeting on her upcoming first-time visit to Gettysburg and her attendance at the ECW Symposium in Fredericksburg. For more information, you can email Tonya at tonyagrahammcquade@gmail.com.

Evan Portman spoke about the Saint Vincent Archabbey monks in the Civil War to the Westmoreland Historical Society in Greensburg, PA. He also stopped by the US Naval Academy in Annapolis, MD, on his way home from the Delaware beaches this month! 

Dave Powell is excited to announce that Atlanta: Vol. 2 is now scheduled for a release date of October 10 or so.

During the Civil War weekend held at Fort Knox in Bucksport, Maine, on July 19, Brian Swartz spoke about the bloody fight between the 20th Maine Infantry and the 15th Alabama Infantry at Little Round Top on July 2, 1863.

Tim Talbott participated in a public meeting at the Varina Area Library on July 29 in support of the New Market Heights Trail, a cooperative project led by the Henrico County Recreation and Parks Department. The interpreted trail will run from Deep Bottom Landing on the James River to the New Market Height battlefield and will create public access to the battlefield. 

GoFundMe for ECW Alum

Eric Wittenberg

We are sorry to share the news that ECW alum Eric Wittenberg has gone into hospice care. Eric has been battling health problems for the past two years, and unfortunately, he took a turn for the worse earlier this week. Our thoughts are with him and his wife, Susan.

Eric was the keynote speaker at our very first ECW Symposium in 2014. Later, he joined as a contributor, writing regular blog posts for several years. Eric has remained a good friend of the organization and has contributed to a number of special projects.

A GoFundMe page has been set up to help defray medical costs. If you are interested in contributing, please use this QR code or visit https://www.gofundme.com/f/please-consider-helping-eric-and-susan-wittenberg

ECW Multimedia

On the Emerging Civil War Podcast in July, Chris Mackowski was joined by

• Morgan Gates to take a closer look at Confederate Lt. Gen. John Pemberton, a man who’s too often too quickly dismissed and misunderstood. Listen to this episode now at Emerging Civil War.

• Ryan Quint, who shared a pair of stories from wartime Portland, Maine: the battle of Portland Harbor and the Great Portland Fire as part of the preparations for the 2025 Emerging Civil War Symposium. Listen to this episode now at Emerging Civil War.

• Kevin Levin to discuss the origin story of the 54th Massachusetts Infantry and its leader, Col. Robert Shaw–part of our look at “The Cities of War” in advance of our 11th Annual Emerging Civil War Symposium at Stevenson Ridge. Listen to this episode now at Emerging Civil War.

• Walt Young to discuss Robert Smalls, who escaped slavery in Charleston, South Carolina. Listen to this episode now at Emerging Civil War.

• Rich Condon of Civil War Pittsburgh, who talked about the largest civilian disaster in the north, the Allegheny Arsenal explosion. Listen to this episode now at Emerging Civil War.

You can listen for free on Spotify or Apple Podcasts, or at https://emergingcivilwar.com/the-emerging-civil-war-podcast/.

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. This month, we've also had videos from the James Garfield Memorial in Cleveland, OH; the Lincoln Highway Memorial in Laramie, WY; and an exclusive interview with American Battlefield Trust President David Duncan about a new effort to permanently preserve Petersburg's Pamplin Park—and more!

Emerging Revolutionary War News

by Phill Greenwalt

July is a momentous month in the era of the American Revolution. In July 1775, George Washington arrived in Cambridge, Massachusetts, outside Boston to take command of the Continental Army. The following year, on July 2, 1776, the Second Continental Congress moved toward the Declaration of Independence by a vote; on July 4, 1776, the document was accepted.

Although already passed by the time you read this, Emerging Revolutionary War historian Eric Sterner gave a talk on his book Till the Extinction of This Rebellion at Historic Locust Grove in Louisville, Kentucky. But, not to fret, his book is available for purchase online and, if you click over to Emerging Revolutionary War's YouTube page, you can see a popular "Rev War Revelry" with Eric on the same subject.

Talking books: on August 10, Emerging Revolutionary War will welcome back author and historian Michael Harris to talk about the third book in his campaign study of 1777, Fighting for Philadelphia, on a "Rev War Revelry."

As always, click over to www.emergingrevolutionarywar.org to keep current with all that is going on