Economics is never far from the minds of the leaders of both the United States and the Confederate States. A year ago this week U.S. President Abraham Lincoln signed the National Currency Act, creating a national banking system, a Currency Bureau and the office of Comptroller of the Currency. The act’s primary purpose was to…
Tennessee native William B. Bate (1826-1905) prior to war proved himself as a young man. Following his first job as a clerk on a steamboat, he then served in the United States Army (during the Mexican-American war), started a newspaper, served in the Tennessee House or Representatives, practiced law, served as attorney general for the…
As winter drags on, food and supplies become an ever greater concern for the armies of the Confederacy. General Robert E. Lee, with President Jefferson Davis‘ approval, has already resorted to impressment to feed the Army of Northern Virginia, to the dissatisfaction of many local civilians. Yet the issue is far from resolved, and Davis…