Block 1 Civil War Learning Stations
Station 1 - New England
Person 1:
Read page 27 in “Life in the North During the Civil War”
“War Fever Sweeps the North”
Questions:
1: Why would Lincoln use the strategy of not mentioning war, a common current event and major problem, in any of his political speeches or approaches?
2. What did leaders in the north see of the war fever and what was their view on it? What was their view on war?
3a.Summarize what the Chicago Journal stated about the South
3b. who was in support of the Chicago Journal?
Person 2:
Read page 23-27 on the “Anaconda Plan” in the book “Mr. Lincoln’s High Tech War”
The Anaconda Plan helped the north win the civil war.
Questions
1. What was the name of the general that created The Anaconda Plan, and what was the strategy he used to conquered the south?
2. On page 27, the Union deliberately burned their own supplies, such as ships, to keep the south from using them. Was this a good idea?
Next read page 111-112 on railroads
1. Railroads had “introduced a new and very important element into the war.” Do you agree or disagree with this statement? How?
2. Look at the map on page 112. Name one railroad in the New England Colonies.
3. What was one possible reason the north may have had a denser network of railroads?
Person 3
Go to:
Questions:
1. The following quote, “Once let the black man get upon his person the brass letters, U.S., let him get an eagle on his button, and a musket on his shoulder and bullets in his pockets, and there is no power on earth which can deny that he has earned the right to citizenship in the United States." Who is this quote spoken by? Describe the message he is trying to convey.
2. Why do you think the President did not authorize the use of African Americans into combat until the issuance of the Emancipation Proclamation?
Scroll down to the section titled: Massachusetts Regiments. Answer the following questions:
3. Describe the event that occurred on July 18, 1863. Why was it it significant?
Next go to the following website:
4. Who was Benjamin Butler? Describe why he was disliked by many.
5. What role did Butler play in the war, how was this significant?
Person 4
Read pages 31-32 (Preparing for War) in the book, The Civil War: The North.
Questions:
1. The first paragraph states that the “crisis appeared serious, and fighting inevitable,many still hoped that some kind of compromise could be worked out.” Was war the only option? Or could a compromise have been made to make all states happy? If so, what would the compromise be?
2. What is the significance of the date April 12, 1861?
Read pages 37-39
3. Who did President Lincoln give his speech to on July 4, 1861?
4. What was the ultimatum given to the Southern Government by the North?
Person 5:
In the book Life During the North in the Civil War, read pages 43-44 “Lincolns Draft” and answer the following questions.
1. Do you think it was necessary for Lincoln to propose a draft? Why?
2. Describe who the bounty jumpers were and their purpose in the drafts. Why did they do what they did and do you think it had a positive or negative effect on the draft? Why?
Everyone
1. From what you’ve read and prior knowledge, did the north or south have a greater advantage in the war? Why?
Station 2 – Mid Atlantic
Maryland-
Emancipation Proclamation
Battle of Antietam- bloodiest battle in American History, and first American Civil war battle fought on Union Soil. General Lee, commander of the Northern Virginia Army, moved to strike Union territory in Maryland. A Confederate messenger dropped a copy of the battle plans, which was found by a Union soldier. The Union then learned that Lee's forces were divided, so General Grant attacked. Antietam (Sharpsburg) was a day long battle on September 17, 1862 at Antietam Creek in Maryland. (Inconclusive but allowed Lincoln to behold a “victory”) 131,000 total and 22,717 dead or wounded.
Battle of South Mountain- Robert E. Lee led the Army of Northern Virginia on an invasion of Maryland in September of 1862. Lee divided his army, sending a portion of it into western Maryland while Stonewall Jackson's wing attempted to capture the Federal arsenal at Harper's Ferry. The bold plan was jeopardized on September 13 when a mislaid copy of Lee's orders revealing the Confederates' plans and positions was given to Union commander Maj. Gen. George B. McClellan. Emboldened by this intelligence, McClellan tried to force his army through three passes in the South Mountain range on September 14, 1862. Intense fighting drew increasing numbers of troops of both armies to Fox's, Turner's, and Crampton's gaps. (Union Victory) 56,000 total and 5,010 dead or wounded.
New York-
-Contributed regiments, supplies, and artillery to Union forces.
-New York City Draft Riots: Starting on July 13, 1863, low class Irish immigrants and other poor whites violently rioted against conscription to the Union Army; this draft would be in place until New York had supplied 18,000 troops. What angered the rioters was that the wealthy could hire someone to take their place or just pay $300 to avoid conscription. A majority of the Irish immigrants blamed blacks, due to the war being fought over their emancipation. According to historian James McPherson, "No black person was safe. Rioters beat several, lynched a half-dozen, smashed the homes and property of scores.”
-Troy Anti-Draft Riot: 2000-3000 New Yorkers attend an anti-draft riot on July 15, 1863. It soon turns violent when the rioters (labeled “mechanics”) attack the Troy Times offices; the Troy Times was a pro-lincoln newspaper. Despite the pleading of important citizens, the rioters rushed into the office and started throwing objects out the window. After the rioters accomplished destroying the office, they then tried to attack an African-American church, but the reverend Havermans and McDonough stopped them.
-Many New Yorkers participated in the Battle of Gettysburg. The first shot was fired by a New York Cavalryman on picket duty. The question remains as to who actually fired the shot, but many speculate it was Corporal Alphonse Hodges. A New Yorker was also the first casualty of the battle; Corporal Cyrus W. James of the 9th New York Volunteer Cavalry was the first recorded death. Overall, 1000 New Yorkers killed, 4000 were wounded, and 2000 were M.I.A. or captured.
Delaware-
Slave state that stayed in the Union, said they were the first in the union, and would be the last to leave it
Rejected 13th amendment (freeing slaves)
Carried Huge regimental flags to identify themselves during battles
Fort Delaware was used as a prison-of-war compound and was nicknamed “The Andersonville of the North” due to how the poor conditions are measurable to Andersonville Prison in Fort Sumter
New Jersey-
Provided troops, equipment and leaders for the Union.
No major battles were fought on Jersey land
Leaders and volunteers played important roles: Philip Kearny and George B. McClellan (Army of the Potomac)
Last Northern state to abolish slavery
Pennsylvania-
Battle of Gettysburg - one of the Largest battles of Civil war. Confederate Gen. Robert E. Lee concentrated his army around Gettysburg, Pennsylvania, upon the approach of Union Gen. George G. Meade’s forces. On July 1, Confederates drove Union defenders through Gettysburg to Cemetery Hill. The next day Lee struck the flanks of the Union line resulting in severe fighting at Devil's Den, Little Round Top, the Wheatfield, Peach Orchard, Culp’s Hill and East Cemetery Hill. Southerners gained ground but failed to dislodge the Union host. On the morning of July 3rd, fighting raged at Culp’s Hill with the Union regaining its lost ground. That afternoon, after a massive artillery bombardment, Lee attacked the Union center on Cemetery Ridge and was repulsed with heavy losses in what is known as Pickett’s Charge. (Union Victory) 165,620 total and 51,112 dead or wounded.
Gettysburg Address - Given on November 19, 1863 by lincoln at the dedication of Soldier’s National Cemetery. It is one of the most famous speeches given in History.
“Four score and seven years ago our fathers brought forth on this continent, a new nation, conceived in Liberty, and dedicated to the proposition that all men are created equal.
Now we are engaged in a great civil war, testing whether that nation, or any nation so conceived and so dedicated, can long endure. We are met on a great battle-field of that war. We have come to dedicate a portion of that field, as a final resting place for those who here gave their lives that that nation might live. It is altogether fitting and proper that we should do this.
But, in a larger sense, we can not dedicate -- we can not consecrate -- we can not hallow -- this ground. The brave men, living and dead, who struggled here, have consecrated it, far above our poor power to add or detract. The world will little note, nor long remember what we say here, but it can never forget what they did here. It is for us the living, rather, to be dedicated here to the unfinished work which they who fought here have thus far so nobly advanced. It is rather for us to be here dedicated to the great task remaining before us -- that from these honored dead we take increased devotion to that cause for which they gave the last full measure of devotion -- that we here highly resolve that these dead shall not have died in vain -- that this nation, under God, shall have a new birth of freedom -- and that government of the people, by the people, for the people, shall not perish from the earth.”
D.C.-
Military headquarters and logistics center during the Civil War.
Virginia-
First Battle of Bull Run- Union troops gathered around Washington D.C. in hope of seizing Manassas, VA, which was a vital railroad, but the Confederate troops aligned the creek waiting for Union forces at Bull Run. This was the first large battle of the war. The Confederate forces defeated the Union. 60,680 total and 4,878 dead or wounded
Battle of Hampton Roads- - On March 8, 1862, from her berth at Norfolk, the Confederate ironclad Virginia steamed into Hampton Roads where she sank Cumberland and ran Congress aground. On March 9, the Union ironclad Monitor having fortuitously arrived to do battle, initiated the first engagement of ironclads in history. The two ships fought each other to a standstill, but Virginia retired. Inconclusive on who won the battle. 1,588 total and 393 dead or wounded
Battle of Yorktown- (Inconclusive)- Marching from Fort Monroe, Maj. Gen. George B. McClellan’s army encountered Maj. Gen. John B. Magruder’s small Confederate army at Yorktown behind the Warwick River. Magruder’s theatrics convinced the Federals that his works were strongly held. McClellan suspended the march up the Peninsula toward Richmond, ordered the construction of siege fortifications, and brought his heavy siege guns to the front. In the meantime, Gen. Joseph E. Johnston brought reinforcements for Magruder. On 16 April, Union forces probed a weakness in the Confederate line at Lee’s Mill or Dam No. 1, resulting in about 309 casualties. Failure to exploit the initial success of this attack, however, held up McClellan for two additional weeks, while he tried to convince his navy to maneuver the Confederates’ big guns at Yorktown and Gloucester Point and ascend the York River to West Point thus outflanking the Warwick Line.
156, 500 total
West Virginia-
-Battle of Hoke’sRun-A battle fought in Berkeley County in West Virginia that took place on July 2, 1861.It was fought between Robert Patterson and Thomas Jackson, and resulted in a victory for the Union.
-Only state to secede from a confederate state in the war
-Civil war began Hatfield-McCoy feud: Involved one West Virginian family led by William Anderson “Devil Anse” Hatfield, and one Kentucky family, led by Randolph “Ole Ran’I” McCoy. The earliest event of the dispute was on January 7, 1865, when Asa Harmon McCoy, an Union soldier that early discharged due to a leg injury, was shot and killed by the Logan Wildcats. The Wildcats were a local militia with many members of the Hatfields, including Devil Anse. While Devil Anse was proven to have been sleeping, his uncle Jim Vance is the suspected killer. The reason Asa was killed was because he joined the Union, an action considered traitorous at the time. The Hatfield-Mccoy feud demonstrated how families turned against each other due to the Civil War. To this day, the Hatfield-McCoy feud is referred to when family rivalries emerge.
Mid-Atlantic Worksheet
1. Why do you think some of the states experienced more of the war than others?
2. What were some of the weapons used in this war that hadn’t been used before?
3. What were the causes of the New York Draft Riots? Why did these spark the riots?
4. Why were the majority of the battles fought in these areas?
5. What did the Hatfield-Mccoy feud demonstrate?
6. The Battle of Stone Mountain was lost for the Confederates due to a mislaid copy of orders detailing positions. How do you think the war might have turned out differently had this not be the case?
Station 3 - Virginia
Member #1: Julia Basil: - “Daily Life in Civil War America”
Go to:
1. Go all the way down to the Virginia section
- Click Fort Stedman
What happened in this battle and what was the result?
2. Stay on the Virginia section and then go to Petersburg
Why was this battle called “battle of old men and young boys” by local residents? (might have to look on different part of the internet)
3. Stay on the Virginia section and then go to Piedmont
Why were more than 1,000 soldiers captured?
4. Stay on the Virginia section and then go to Williamsburg
Why was this battle considered inconclusive?
5. Stay on the Virginia section and then go to Yorktown
Why were there a minimal amount of casualties in this battle and what was the result of this war?
6. Stay on the Virginia section and then go to Manassas
What was another name for this battle? Why did Thomas J. Jackson earn the nom de guerre “Stonewall?”
7. Stay on the Virginia section and then go to Appomattox
This is the final battle of the Civil War, who was the victor and why was this so important?
8. Overall, which battle do you think is most important?
9. Why was that battle the most important?
Member #2:- “The Civil War”
Instructions:
Go to page number 42 in the book The Civil War
Read and answer the questions dealing with the war specifically fought in the East
What general did Lincoln think had the greatest chance of capturing Richmond? (pg. 42)
What were the name of the two ironclads that fought at Hampton Roads on March 9th and what side did they support? (pg. 43)
Describe in detail what happened in Fredericksburg in December. (pg. 54)
What was the bold idea that Jackson proposed?(pg. 57)
Do you think that Jackson’s idea to divide and conquer was a good or bad idea with their less amount of soldiers?
How did Jackson die? (pg. 57-59)
What was significant about his death?
Now Click on and watch the video for the following questions
What was John Brown’s role in the slave reformation movement?
What happened at Harpers Ferry and what were the consequences for John Brown?
What did John Brown represent for the North and for the South?
Did John Brown overall accomplish what he intended for?
Member #3:Andy Duong- “Life Among the Soldiers and Cavalry”
Chapter 1: Joining Up (Pgs. 13-15)
What was the basic infantry called? Cavalry?
What made up a regiment? Brigade?
What was the difference in the divisions for the North and South?
How were corps made? Army?
How was the army groups named for the Federals and Confederates?
What army had almost all state volunteers fight for them?
Go To:
What events made Robert Edward Lee a colonel?
What offer did Robert E. Lee decline from Abraham Lincoln? Why? Instead, what offer DID he accept?
What general did Robert E. Lee replace in 1862 and what did he rename it? What became of this army?
What did Robert E. Lee do in September of 1862? Why? What happened during this event and who had to withdraw?
Who did Lee have to yield to? When did he surrender to this person?
Member #4: Matt Lisi: Encyclopedia of the American Civil War(Volume 4, R-Z)
-Read Pages 2030-2037
Go to page 2033(bottom paragraph)