Today, Edwin Stanton, the U.S. Secretary of War, gives Massachusetts governor John A. Andrew permission to begin recruiting black troops for the first U.S. colored regiment. Andrew sets about assembling officers for the 54th Massachusetts Infantry, all of whom are to be white, as mandated by the government. Among the officers selected is Colonel Robert…
The ripple effects of December’s Battle of Fredericksburg continue as today William F. Broaddus begins a new chapter in his ministerial career. Broaddus, well-known Virginia Baptist educator and preacher from Fredericksburg, has had his share of difficulties in recent times. After having spent almost two months in a Union prison in Washington, D.C. from July…
In the North, today’s edition of Harper’s Weekly features a celebrative illustration of U.S. President Abraham Lincoln‘s Emancipation Proclamation, drawn by Thomas Nast. A family of former slaves is pictured in the center, with a portrait of Lincoln hanging on the wall. The past is illustrated to the left, and a hopeful future is envisioned…