Elijah P. Marrs, Company L, 12th U.S. Colored Artillery, experiences an adventure-filled day in Kentucky. A slave until running away mere months ago, the Union soldier and Baptist layman, his company tasked with recruiting new black soldiers, unexpectedly confronts the prospect of death at the hands of Confederate soldiers. Fortunately, the encounter takes place in…
Today in the far West a clash between Indians and U.S. soldiers takes place. In the Battle of Julesburg some 1,000 Cheyenne, Arapaho, and Lakota Indians, seeking revenge for the Sand Creek Massacre less than two months earlier, defeat a small contingent of 60 soldiers and 50 civilians. In the weeks following, the victorious Indians…
For several months, various parties have attempted to find a way to bring Union and Confederate officials to the table to negotiate a peace settlement. To date, no formal talks have taken place. Nonetheless, a new effort to arrange high level discussions offers a hint of bearing fruit. Francis Preston Blair, Sr., an aged…